Chapter 7: Chapter 6: Jeanne Alter!
"(Here, let me help you up.)" I held my hand out to the girl.
She paused, seemingly surprised before smiling and allowing me to hoist her to her feet...only for her to stumble and almost fall again, if not for me keeping her up.
"(...thank you.)" She smiled gently as I helped her to a nearby piece of rubble to sit on.
"(You are a servant, right? You seem to be fading...)"
"(Indeed. Though I am a ruler class servant, there seemed to be something wrong with my summoning and am not being supplied with prana from the grail.)"
"(...ruler?)"
What the hell is a ruler class servant!? Da Vinci explained to me about the seven servants, not anything about Rulers.
"(A ruler class servant is summoned by the grail to oversee the grail war, making sure that the rules are followed. They possess command seals to the servants summoned as well as the ability to see the true identity of the servants.)" Ruler informed me before gaining a slightly confused look.
"(Though it seems that I wasn't summoned right, as I don't have command seals nor do I have the ability to see true identities. It also seems that the grail isn't supplying me with prana...I will most likely dissapear in two hours. Now, may I ask what is going on here?)" Ruler asked, looking at the destroyed fort.
I explained to her what is happening, or at least all that I know about what is happening. My servants are waiting in the distance slightly, though I can see that Arturia is on edge, clearly not liking that fact that I am with an unknown servant.
"(Another...me?)" Ruler muttered with wide eyes.
My eyebrows furrowed when I heard that before I realised who this is and the urge to hit my head against a nearby wall made itself apparent.
"(So you're Jeanne D'arc then?)"
"(Oh! Yes, I was so caught up with everything that I forgot to introduce myself. I am Jeanne D'arc, servant Ruler. A pleasure to meet you...)"
"Issen, Uchiha Issen. Though I guess it would be Issen Uchiha to you I suppose. I'm the last master of Chaldea." I said with a friendly smile, switching to English.
"I see...it's nice to meet you then, Issen. Though I wasn't aware there was a master in this holy grail war."
"Like I said before, this isn't a grail war and I'm a bit of a...special case? It's a bit complicated. Before I explain, I want to ask if you would form a contract with me until this whole mess is fixed."
"Eh? Don't you already have servants already? I don't want to-"
"It's fine, It's fine! I actually have a very large amount of Prana, even with four servants I don't feel any strain." I cut her off.
"Are you sure? Why would you trust some random servant?"
"Well, even if it was a short time, we did fight together. Also I can tell you're a good person just by looking into your eyes. Besides, I'm sure that you want to help you country, right? We have the same goal, so what's wrong with getting another ally." I smiled gently.
Jeanne looked into my eyes, seemingly searching for an deceit before smiling beautifully with rosy cheeks.
"Thank you, Issen. It would be a pleasure to form a contract with you."
|0|
The two formed the contract, once again Issen barely even felt a strain on his circuits.
Jeanne herself was completely startled when she felt how pure his prana is. The quality is simply amazing, even though she is still ranked down and weakened, she is filled with energy.
The pair had quickly met up with the other servants before retreating into the forest, making a small camp in a clearing.
Issen told the group of what he knew based off his talk with Jeanne.
"So two of the same Servant have been summoned to the same era, am I right…?" Mashu asked.
"Yes…if I were to go through the records of the Holy Grail War, I would think that such a practice of simultaneous summoning might exist. Anyways, let's make some decisions here. Charles VII is dead, and Orleans is taken. In other words, we could say that the country of France is collapsing." Roman stated.
"Historically, France was the country that first popularized concepts of human liberty and equality, and many other countries followed in its wake. If such rights were delayed for even a century, the development of humanity would no doubt stagnate. If this happened, we might even be living in the same conditions as the Middle Ages in the present day."
Jeanne looked around, finding no trace of Roman and getting confused. "I can hear a voice…what black magic is this now? What the heck are you guys---"
"Whoops, I almost forgot to introduce myself. It's a pleasure to meet you, Saint Jeanne D'arc. I am Roani Akiman. Everyone calls me Roman, though. I'm these guys' support. I'll be looking forwards to working with you."
"I see, Roman. You're just like a dream person!" Jeanne smiled causing Regis to snicker.
"…gah, this sense of defeat…even though she praised me, it doesn't feel good at all…" Roman muttered.
"Sorry to interrupt, Jeanne. I'd like to explain our version of things now, though. Our goal here is to fix distortions of history. Chaldea. That is the name of our organization."
Mashu then explains what chaldea is and it's role to Jeanne, said girl seems amazed at what she heard.
"…I see. To think that these events would lead to the destruction of the world. Suddenly my troubles seem so small in comparison. But now, I---"
"Fou?"
"Even though I am weakened and was summoned incorrectly, I can't believe that another 'me' was summoned. Not only that but she is able to summon dragons. To summon a dragon would be black magic of the highest order. I have no idea how she is doing it, in my lifetime such a thing would be impossible."
"Well, we have to assume that she already has the grail. It's the only way she would be able to summon Wyverns after all." Issen stated, crossing his arms.
"Yes, I see..." Jeanne muttered in understanding.
"Well, your not alone in you journey here, Jeanne. We'll support you." Issen smiled.
"Thank you, Issen-kun. However, we should first scout out the neighboring towns." Jeanne said, a hand on her chin.
"Yes, directly attacking the Orleans would be unwise. That's enemy territory, and we don't even have a base yet ourselves. Right now we should take the initiative and collect some information on their defenses. Then, we can find witch Jeanne – or perhaps we should call her Dark Jeanne."
"I just call her Jeanne Alter since that's what we named Saber back in Fyuuki." Issen interjected.
"Either way, we should find out what Servants she has on hand next. Last comes battle preparation. It'd be nice if we had more allies." Roman stated.
"Jeanne-san. Besides us, can you sense any other Servants?" Mashu asked.
"My apologies. While Ruler possesses the ability to sense other Servants, right now I cannot use that power either. I'm basically the same as a standard Servant right now. Unless another Servant comes within a certain range, I won't be able to detect them."
Issen hummed before his eyes widen in realization. "Wait, what about the other Jeanne?"
Jeanne gained a confused expression before she bolted up to her feet. "…! I've been careless, that is indeed a possibility. The other me…no, witch Jeanne…argh, forget it, I'll just call her Jeanne Alter too!"
Issen coughed into a fist to hide his chuckle at seeing the frustrated face of Jeanne, finding it cute.
"Errm, if that Jeanne Alter truly became a Servant like me, her class would be Ruler. In that case, she would be able to immediately sense our location. ….we must prepare to fight at any moment. If we can, we should minimize intel gathering in populated areas, but---" Jeanne looked at Issen.
"If we lack even a single clue like we do now, then we won't be able to get anywhere, will we? Plus, Issen-Kun is a human. He needs to sleep."
Issen nodded his head, taking off a wristband on his right arm, revealing a seal. Channeling chakra to it, a small cloud came out to reveal two scrolls.
"What are those for? No, what did you just do?" Cu asked.
"These are storage scrolls, as for what these are..." He raised the right scroll. "This has equipment for Shirou to cook on, and this one has all the sleeping bags that everyone will need. You all need to keep your prana consumption down, I have a feeling tomorrow is going to be rough."
Servants don't need to sleep or eat, but both gives them energy.
Issen spread out the first scroll and a portable kitchen popped out, equipped with all the necessary tools for a good meal. Then he brought out the food that was in a separate scroll. Shirou went straight to work with cooking while Issen had Cu help him with setting up camp so they all have something to sit on as he forgot to seal chairs.
'Ah, the wonders of Fuinjutsu.' Issen thought to himself.
He's so close to being able to use seals to increase the gravity he feels, acting like weights. That is definitely something he will use upon getting back to Chaldea.
|0|
I stared at the stars from within my sleeping bag. Hmmm, Jeanne still hasn't returned.
The other servants are all resting, conserving their energy for tomorrow at my request. However, the servant that needs sleep the most, is not here. Wonderful.
Quietly, I stand up without alerting the others and start to look for the Ruler class servant.
It didn't take long as she was in another clearing, sitting on a rock while looking at the stars in deep thought. I found myself simply staring for a few seconds, unable to take my eyes off her as the moonlight seems to reflect off her hair, enhancing her beauty.
I mentally slap myself and walk forward while reaching out, tapping her on the shoulder. Instantly she jumps and whirls around, ready to attack.
"Wait! I come in peace!" I said jokingly, throwing my hands into the universal sign of surrender.
"Issen-Kun! I'm sorry, you startled me." Jeanne said sheepishly, calming down.
"No, you had the correct reaction. Though you should pay attention to your surroudings more, if I was the enemy then you would be dead." I stated sternly.
Jeanne looked slightly embarassed before she let out a sigh. "Yes, it appears that I was too deep in thought."
I plopped down next to her. "So, is there still something you haven't told us yet?"
I noticed that something doesn't...seem right with her situation. It's like she's holding back or something.
"...."
"You don't have to tell me, I'm not going to force you if you feel uncomfortable."
"No no, I shouldn't keep things from my allies." Jeanne took a breath, bringing her knees to her chest. "I guess you could say it was because of my imperfect summoning as a Servant. Or perhaps it's because I basically died only a few days ago. However you put it, right now I feel just like a brand new servant."
She gained an embarassed blush as she mumbled that into her knees causing me to raise an eyebrow. "Brand new servant?"
"Yes. The Throne of Heroes exists outside of time. Despite that, right now I have no power to access its records. Because of that, it is difficult for me to function as a Servant. If I were to compare it to when I lived, it feels as if I were about to head into battle for the first time. The fluffy little mage-san from earlier…"
I chuckled at her description of Roman.
"He called me a patriot and saint, but I lack the power to live up to those expectations.…well, that's it. The way I am right now, I'll certainly be dragging you all down."
I blinked once, then twice, before snorting to myself.
"Tell me, Jeanne. It was written that you went to war as a powerless girl, and yet you turned the war into France's favor. You, a powerless girl, did that. So why is it so different now? Now that you are weaker again, will you quit? Will you leave you country to be destroyed by another 'you'?"
"I WILL NOT!" Jeanne stood up, glaring at me before she realised what she did and sat back down while looking sheepish. "I'm sorry. I just..."
"No. It's good. I'm glad that you have that inner strength to not give up. As long as you keep that, there's no way you can be a burden." I smiled. "Everyone has a reason to fight, just keep clinging to that reason and you will do fine."
Jeanne smiled, looking less stressed then when I came here. "Thank you, Issen-Kun. That...helped me clear my head."
"Great! Then I guess I'll be relying on you from now on?" I smiled.
"Y-yes!" She nodded, pink dying her cheeks for a second. "But what do you fight for, Issen-Kun?"
My smile dropped slightly as I thought of my answer. If I was still in my last world, I would have said 'for my family'. Now though...
"For humanity."
"...eh?"
"Well, how should I put it? Uh, I guess you could say I like people. Of course there are groups of people I dislike, but I like the unlimited potential humanity has. After all, we're a race that made it to the moon despite not being born with wings."
Jeanne remained silent as she seemed to listen intently.
"So I guess you can say I love people in general, children, Adults, older folk....and now the world is incinerated and humanity will no longer exist in 2020 if we don't fix all these singularities." I explained, omitting the world ending beast that comes after Grand Order.
"That's a wonderful thing to fight for..." Jeanne looked at me with respect before gaining curious eyes. "What do you mean by people have made it to the moon?"
"Shouldn't the grail...oh, right." I forgot that she was indirectly summoned and can't access the grails records. "Ahem! Yes, humans built machines that allow us to go up to the moon."
"Wow..." Jeanne's eye sparkled at hearing that. "How is that possible?"
"Science and human will power...as well as a bit of competition." I sweatdropped at the last one.
If I remember correctly, the while reason that there was a rush to the moon by the US and Russia was to see who can get there first.
"Science?" She tilted her head.
"Yes, and math of course."
"Geh..."
I ignored that and continued on. "People worked relentlessly, trying find the right equations, create the right vessel, get the people trained, etc. After all that, humans made it to the moon."
"...Um, if you don't mind, could you tell me about other things from your time?"
I hummed in thought before pressing on a seal that was placed on my forearm. A smart phone popped out, and I motioned her to get closer.
This was something I got back when my training period was over. I don't have much use for it other then the gallery, some,music, and games, but I brought it with me on a whim.
"What's this?"
I turned it on and her eyes go wide at the sudden light that came from the screen, a picture of my family as the wall paper.
"This is called a smart phone. It-"
I went ahead and did my best to explain what it does. She didn't understand most of it, but seemed mystified by the hole thing.
I stiffened slightly when she rested her head on my shoulder, her eyes opening and closing before remaining closed, soft breathing could be heard coming from her.
Nervous sweat formed on the back of my neck when I realised I couldn't move from this position or she would wake up.
Damn it!
|0|
Needless to say, Issen didn't sleep much last night. When he was about to fall asleep, Jeanne shifted and hugged his arm like a teddy bear, unknowingly pressing her breasts against him which caused him to once again be unable to sleep.
At this point, the Uchiha is sort of just blankly staring ahead of him, small bags seen beneath his eyes.
"Mmmnnn..."
Jeanne mumbled as she gripped the warm pillow tighter, burying her face into it.
'Eh? Pillow?'
Eyes flashing open, she quickly realized that she was not hugging a pillow but an arm with her face in the crook of Issen's neck.
"Kyaaa~!" She shoved Issen away, the poor boy was half asleep as he was sent tumbling off the rock and slamming face first into the ground.
He remained on the ground, motionless.
"Issen-Kun! I'm so sorry!"
The ruler class servant, with a bright red face, jumped down and started to shake Issen.
"Ugh..."
With a grunt, Issen slowly sat up and blinked the dirt from his eyes before sending an unamused glare over to Jeanne.
"Good morning." He said with a dry expression.
"Good morning, eheheh..." Jeanne chuckled awkwardly before realising something. "W-was I like that all night?"
"Hmm, you used my shoulder in the beginning, but at some point you started hugging onto my arm." Issen murmered, rubbing his eyes.
"What!? I'm sorry, I was just tired after all that happened."
"It's fine. At least you seem better now." Issen smiled tiredly.
"You could have just woken me up..."
"Nah, I'm fine. I slept like a log." That was a lie.
Issen stood up, his back cracking as he stretched.
"Well, are you ready for today?" Issen asked.
"Yes!" Jeanne nodded.
The two of them went over to the group, all of them other then Shirou look like they've just woken up. Said Archer is making a quick breakfast.
They ate the meal and headed off after Issen hastily sealed all of the things away.
"When we get out of this forest, we'll be heading straight towards Orleans. Of course, riding directly into Orleans will be difficult. However, we might be able to collect some intel from surrounding towns and forts." Jeanne informed as they traversed through the forest.
"Oh, I'm an idiot!" Issen slammed his palm into his forehead.
"What's wrong, master?" Arturia asked from his side.
Issen didn't reply, instead holding his hands into a cross hand seal before eight solid clones appeared around him.
"Go out and scout the area's other then the one we're currently going to. Make sure to use transformation to blend in with the locals."
""""Yes, sir!"""" The clones saluted before flickering in different directions.
"What was that?" Jeanne asled with wide eyes.
"It's a clone technique. They can only last on solid hit before dispelling, but I recieve their memories so their great for Intel gathering. Plus Jeanne Alter won't be able to sense them since I'm not a servant."
'I could have made some earlier but it slipped my mind.' Issen internally scowled at his own stupidity.
"That's amazing!" Jeanne praised.
The group finally exited the forest using the path.
"We've already arrived at La Charité. Right now, we have no idea whether or not we are strong enough to defeat our foes, and know nothing of what they are truly capable of. Until we are certain of their limitations, we should not attack. If we are unable to get information on Orleans here, then we may be unable to further approach."
"You seem very careful, Jeanne-San." Mash spoke up.
"…no, to be honest I'm very impatient right now. I can't keep my mind off what the other 'me' may be like. What could such a monster be doing to the people she has under her control...though, it's easy enough to imagine. With such unthinkable power, and such unthinkable hatred, it would be simple to break even the purest humans."
Issen saw that she was shaking ever so slightly and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Remember what we talked about last night."
Jeanne's eyes widened before she nodded her head, determination burning in her eyes. "Right."
Cu came up besides Issen with a smirk. "Last night, huh?"
"Huh? You say something?"
A vein throbbed on Cu's forehead, but he was cut off by Roman before he could retort.
"Hmm, wait a moment. I'm picking up Servants in your guys' destination. They're in La Charité. Right in your guys' next stop."
"!!" All of them instantly tensed up.
"Huh, but it's heading far away." Roman groaned. "…gah, no good, I've lost it! It's fast!"
That didn't sit well with the group. Now they have a servant out there without knowing where they are. Hopefully it isn't an enemy.
"Fou! Foooou!"
The white creature suddenly jumped on Issen's head and started barking madly.
"Huh? What's the matter?"
"Fou Fou Fooouu!"
Fou raised a paw and pointed in the distance. Issen's eyes widened when he saw what Fou was pointing at.
Screams of paim, cries for help, a crushed little sister flashed in his mind as he saw a plume of smoke rising from the town.
"The town is…burning…!?" Mash gasped.
"Lets go!" Jeanne sprinted forward, panic on her face.
Issen didn't wait for any of them, the ground literally crumbled and cratered as he took off, all of his limbs unconsiously reinforced before he flickered over to the town, leaving behind the group who yells out for him to stop.
"HELLO!? IS ANYONE THERE!?" Issen yelled.
The town was almost completely destroyed and completely silent.
SHUFFLE
Hearing movement within one of the houses, Issen kicked open the door. The inside was almost completely burned, parts of the ceiling collapsed.
"Is there anyone-!"
The words died in his throat when he saw thw sight before him.
GNAW
A zombified soldier was biting into the head of a dead little girl.
Issen stood there, staring at the scene with an empty gaze before the zombie was decapitated, Kusanagi gleaming maliciously as Issen's sharingan activated. Only a single emotion was seen in his eyes.
Rage.
"No..." Jeanne gasped when she saw a zombie soldier, quickly putting it to rest.
"Where's master!?" Arturia yelled, slicing though another zombie.
"Tch! He's going to get himself killed." Cu growled.
Shirou remained silent, he could guess why Issen is acting like that.
"Either way, you have to get to Issen!" Roman yelled.
"Master!" Mash called out, trying to get a response.
They heard a noise and went to investigate, but it wasn't Issen. Instead it was a Wyvern that was eating the corpse of a dead woman.
"No, stop it-!" Jeanne yelled, about to charge forward.
She wasn't able to, however, as a large purple hand shot out from the side and grabbed onto the wyverns head. The beast let out a whimper before the hand crushed its skull, sending blood all over.
The purple hand dissapeared, and Issen walked out with kusanagi in his hand.
"Issen-Kun, are you-!"
Issen turned to the group, his EMS spinning wildly as blood was splattered all over him. Mashu, Jeanne, and even Arturia flinched when they saw the complete rage that was burning in his eyes, killing intent coating his entire body.
When Issen registered who the group was, his gaze softened slightly.
"Good to see you arrived. The town is infested with zombies and wyverns. It seems that the attack happened a day or two ago."
"Master, you can't run ahead like that!" Arturia scolded Issen, grabbing onto the hem of his shirt.
Issen blinked before his eyes went back to onyx. "Sorry, I acted on instinct."
Arturia then started to scold Issen further, claiming he was far too reckless.
"..."
"Jeanne-san?" Mash called out, noticing that Jeanne was silent.
"This was done by the other 'me', wasn't it?" Jeanne said, gripping her banner tightly.
"You don't know that for—"
"No, I think so. In fact, I'm certain of that...there's just one thing I still don't understand. The amount of hatred for humanity one has to have to do such things. That, I simply can't comprehend."
Issen scowled as he returned with Arturia, hearing what Jeanne said.
"Wait, you guys! The Servants from earlier are turning around! This is bad, they've probably sensed you guys!"
They all tensed. "How many!?"
"Oi, you've got to be joking…!? Five of them! With that speed…are they all Riders or something? A-anyways, you have to run!"
"Why? We out number them." Issen said.
"I don't know, but these readings show that they are all as strong as berserkers! Hell, one of them is even stronger then that! Evacuate, everyone get the hell out of there! Like what Sun Tzu would say!"
"..." Jeanne remained silent.
"No." Issen stated.
"What!? You can't be-"
"I want to meet Jeanne Alter. I wish to meet the one behind all of this. Maybe we can even take out a servant or two."
Not even a moment later did the group of five enemy servants come down in front of the chaldea group, one in particular looked very familiar.
"Ah...!" Jeanne gasped as she saw a double of herself with shorter hair and slightly altered looks.
"...what the hell is this. I can't believe it. How did something like this even happen?" Jeanne Alter muttered before her shoulders start to shake with laughter. "Hey, somebody, please. Go grab some cold water and douse me with it. This is bad. This is dangerous. Seriously, this is getting just too funny here. If you don't stop me, I feel like I might just laugh myself to death!"
Issen closed his eyes, pushing down his rage and started to take in nature eenergy while listening to the talk.
"Hey, look, Gilles! Look at that pitiful little girl! What would you call her, a louse? A rat? A worm? In the end they're all the same! Tiny things that no one would ever pity! Ah, but actually, even a rat's country would be better off than a country that had to rely on this little girl! Hey, Gilles, don't you think so too, oh, that's right. I didn't bring Gilles with me this time." Jeanne Alter muttered.
"You…who are you!?" Jeanne shouted.
"I could ask you the same thing…though, I suppose as your superior, I should be the one to answer." Jeanne Alter smirked as she stabbed her black banner into the ground. "I am Jeanne D'arc. The resurrected saint and patriot, other 'me'."
"…that's absurd. You aren't a saint. You are nothing like me. Though perhaps, after everything that's happened, I can't say that anymore. Anyways---why did you attack this town?" Jeanne asked.
Jeanne Alter looked at her other self with a raised eyebrow before smirking. "…why, you ask? I thought you would be able to understand, being the same Jeanne D'arc as me. Have your lowered attributes made you this stupid? Why did I attack this town? That's a stupid question. Isn't it obvious? Simply to destroy France, of course. The Servant way. Political attacks and economic attacks are too slow and roundabout. But the physical approach, just crushing everything, is quick and certain, wouldn't you agree?"
"That's madness…!" Jeanne scowled, gripping her banner tightly.
"Madness? I guess we Jeanne D'arcs can be pretty stupid sometimes, huh. Why did we ever think of helping this country? Why did we ever think of saving these fools? Those humans knowingly betrayed us, spat at us, lied to us!"
"That was-"
"I won't be tricked anymore. I won't allow any more treachery. Anyways, I can't even hear God's voice now. Being unable to hear God's voice is the same as God giving up on this country, so to speak. So, I will destroy everything. I will serve as a manifestation of God's grief. I will rip out every last seed of evil by the roots." Jeanne Alter smirked maliciously.
"As long as humanity continues to exist, this hatred of mine will never lessen. I will rebuild this France into a silent, dead country. This is all of me. These are the ways of the new saint Jeanne D'arc, changed and matured by death.Well, I suppose you still can't understand. You'll always still keep on pretending to be a saint."
"But you know, if you keep pretending not to see hatred and joy alike, then you won't ever be able to help your precious humanity move forwards, o beautiful and pure saint!"
"Wha..." Jeanne was speechless at hearing what her alter was saying.
"..." Issen remained silent, black pigment beginning to form around his eyes.
"Ahh, but how would Servants help humanity grow anyways? If you say that, then perhaps you could say Heroic Spirits are like a kind of power-up, perhaps…" Roman said.
"...there's a noisy fly buzzing around. If you keep hurting my ears, I'll kill you, you know?" Jeanne Alter glared at the image of Roman.
"!? Wait, my console heated up? Can that Servant kill someone else just by glaring at them!?"
At that moment, Issen opened his eyes. Instesd of the crimson or onyx they normally are, they are now a glowing blue with enlarged iris's, black pigment around his eyes. It looks similar to that of a wolf.
The blue eyes slowly shifted to a violet color, three tomoe spinning wildly before blue lightning crackled around his body like armor.
'Lightning release: Lightning armor.'
"Shirou, Cu." The lone master of chaldea gained the attention of the servants. "You two will take on assassin. Jeanne, Mashu, and Arturia will combat Lancer."
With that said, Issen vanished leaving only a small line of lightning behind.
He reappeared in front of a stunned Jeanne Alter and slammed his fist into her face, sending her flying. A hand gripped her ankle, pulling her back before a lightning covered fist slammed into her stomach, the ground shaking from the force of the punch.
"Gaha!" Blood flew out of the fallen saints mouth. "...you!"
Enraged, fire burst from the ground surrounding Jeanne Alter, causing Issen to retreat.
Jeanne Alter didn't plan on allowing him to recover, using her A rank agility to move at Godspeed and stab forward with her banner.
However, little did she know that Issen's EMS could easily pick up her movement, making it look like she was moving at a snails pace.
The master of chaldea unsheathed Kusanagi and used the sheath to redirect the banner to the side and slashed downward with his sword.
Jeanne Alter cursed as she raised her sword to block Kusanagi, but once again she was surprised when she was knocked back by the force behind the blow.
'How!? How is this human so strong!?'
Issen held Kusanagi in his right hand while the sheath is held at his waist in a reverse grip, the lightning armor still going strong.
Jeanne had told Issen that she possessed A rank magic resistance normally so it wouldn't be a surprise if her other self did as well. This meant that almost all of his jutsu is useless and the ones that would work take too long, Jeanne Alter wouldn't give him the time to use the jutsu.
So, he will just have to use all of his physical techniques and sword to damage her.
Once again Issen seemed to teleport to Jeanne Alter, aiming for her neck with Kusanagi. Instinct saved her, allowing her to duck below the strike and stab with her sword.
Using his sheath to parry, Issen spun around and kicked at the enemy ruler's face. Jeanne Alter raised her banner up and while she was sent to the side, she remained upright.
A feral growl came from Issen as he saw that his attack failed bit quickly got over it as he jumped to the side, avoiding a pillar of fire that erupted beneath him.
He then had to smack aside three black lances, one managing to cut into his leg but thanks to sage mode it didn't do much damage.
"Why are you so strong!? No human can match a servant!" Jeanne Alter clashed blades with Issen.
With his sage mode still active, he tried to push against Jeanne Alter but grunted in surprise when he was the one who got pushed back.
Issen hastily used subsitution to avoid getting skewered by the banner but was hit in the stomach with the pole, sending him into a building.
"Gagh!" Blood seeped through his lips, unknown to him Jeanne Alter has A rank strength. It was thanks to sage mode that the attack wasn't fatal.
The Lightning armor faded and he had roughly 30 minutes of Sage Mode left. He could still fight.
Jeanne Alter laughed as she waved her hand, the house that Issen was flown intp bursting into flames.
"Haha...that serves the human right."
"GUUUOOOOOOO!!!"
A loud roar sounded from the house, a spectral purple skeleton with yellow eyes erupted from the flames.
"Did you think that I was dead?" Issen asked, his viloet EMS spinning. "Allow me to show you the might of my Susanoo!"
Tendons and muscle formed over bone, yellow eyes gleamed and another arm sprouted from its right arm, a cross bow forming on it's left.
A circle of purple magatama formed on the lower right arm.
"Yasaka no Magatama!" Issen roared as the Susanoo threw the beads at Jeanne Alter.
BOOOOOMMMMM
The fallen saint moved out of the way of the magatama but was thrown back by the explosion.
Issen formed an arrow with the top right arm of Susanoo and quickly fired it at Jeanne Alter with the spectral warriors cross bow, followed by two others.
All of Issen's attacks were fortified and strengthened with nature energy, his Susanoo being stronger then normal.
Jeanne Alter dodged the first two arrows, said arrows completely destroyed everything in their path. The third arrow nearly took her arm off as blood gushed out of a deep wound at her shoulder.
She went into a fit of rage, attacking the Susanoo with everything she had, making cracks form. It moves faster then she expected as well.
The Susanoo roared as it slammed down a sword with its upper right arm to make Jeanne Alter back off.
'This isn't good...' Due to injecting some of his nature energy into the Susanoo, his sage mode is going to wear off soon...
However as the Susanoo continued to attack Jeanne Alter, something caught his eye.
Jeanne was breathing heavy with numerous wounds, her defence broken as Lancer kicked away Arturia and went to stab at Jeanne. Mash was to the side, a large wound on her leg preventing her from moving.
'No!' Issen stopped attacking Jeanne Alter and tried to move his Susanoo to defend Jeanne.
'It won't make it...'
Making a split second decision, Susanoo vanished before Issen burst forward with God speed.
SQUELCH
A sickening sound of a stake piercing flesh sounded through the area, blood splattering over Jeanne's face.
"Issen-Kun!"
Issen stood in front of Jeanne, lancers weapon stabbed throughthe left side of his chest.
"Hahahaha! To think a master would take a servants blow! How hilarious!" Lancer laughed loudly as he moved to remove his stake.
Issen's left hand snapped upward, clamping around Lancers arm preventing him from retreating with his 'lance'.
"...What!?"
A normal rasengan formed in Issen's hand before he injected wind chakra into it. Without a clone he couldn't stabilise it completely, so instead of a full rasenshuriken, it was the smaller one that Naruto made before he learned sage mode.
'Wind Release: Rasengan!'
Issen slammed the attack into Lancers chest, throwing him back while gouging out a good amount of the berserker lancer's chest. Lancer didn't let go of his weapon even after being blasted backwards, making him pull the weapon free of Issen's chest with a sickening noise.
Issen collapsed to his knees, sage mode running out, causing his pain to double.
"Dam you, Boy! You dare-!" Lancer nearly screamed in rage.
"Enough." Jeanne Alter spoke, her voice cold. "It was clear that it was a mistake to send out you two. You like to play with your prey too much. I'll have the wyverns finish off that annoying little girl and that master."
Wyverns drop down from the sky, causing the tired servants of Issen to inwardly groan.
Arturia can't release her NP in such place without destroying everything. Shirou, however...
"Hunter of the red plains, Hrunting!"
A red sword/arrow that radiated blood lust flew through the air, briefly the sound of a wolf howling was heard before Hrunting pierced through two Wyverns, one red and one blue.
Shirou then started to use sword/arrows with dragon slaying capabilities despite the higher cost of prana. Arturia and Cu helping the archer class servant take down wyverns to protect their master.
"Master/Issen-Kun!" Mashu and Jeanne kneel at Issen's side as he vomits up blood.
Issen grunts as he placed a hand to his wound and starts to use medical jutsu to try and heal it.
"Wait! You can not allow mindless beast kill them! It would be a waste of the saints blood and I wish to kill the boy myself!" Lancer yelled at Jeanne Alter.
"Silence. Know your place, Vlad III." The Altered servant cut him off coldly. "I care not for how much power and authority you had in life, for as a Servant in this present world, you are the same as the rest of your brethren. Such disobedience will most certainly displease me. So why don't you kindly retreat for now and think about what you've done?"
"Tch...! Everyone, grab Issen-Kun and retreat! I will hold them off long enough for you to get away!"
A hand shot out and slapped the back of her head, an annoyed Issen glared at her. "Shut it. I don't leave...behind comrades."
"Master, are you alright!?" Mashu asked, feeling helpless.
"The wound is closing, but I'm losing too much blood...." Issen muttered, feeling quite faint as he continued to heal his wound in an attempt to at least stop the bleeding.
"Awawa, now the Wyvern behind us are getting riled up too!?" Roman panicked, seeing Shirou, Arturia, and Cu fighting against the wyverns.
"Doctor, please calm down. At this rate, you're going to have a panic attack…!" Mashu told the doctor from Issen's side.
"B-but things are getting really bad! Awawa, email, right…at a time like this we should turn to the internet! Internet Idol Page GO! Magical☆Marie's Crystal Ball, Magical Marie's Crystal☆Ball!"
"Oi! At least use google! *cough*!"
"Issen-Kun, stop talking!" Jeanne scolded Issen as she joins the three against the wyverns.
"Let's see, 'Right now some Wyvern Servants are coming to attack, what should we do.'" Roman paused as he waited for an answer. "'Hmm~☆How does getting killed and being reincarnated sound?' Uwaaa, what a cruel Internet Idol! She doesn't understand people's feelings at all!"
'Too bad! I was already killed and brought back before!' Issen yelled within his mind.
Without warning, a glass rose was thrown down, right between the two parties that were planning on killing each other.
"Eh?"
"-What?"
"A glass...rose?" Mashu muttered.
"How horrid. The state of this town. This battle. Even the very thoughts and ideas here are unacceptable. You all are so beautiful, and yet your bodies are intertwined with so much blood and hatred. Whether they be good or evil, don't you think all people should be light-hearted and happy?" A young females voice sounded through the area.
"…another Servant." Jeanne Alter said with narrowed eyes.
"No shit, Sherlock." Issen grunted, rolling his eyes while ignoring the glare sent his way.
"Y-You're...!?" The enemy saber spoke up, looking shocked at the appearance of the newcomer.
The unknown servant has white hair and blue eyes, a hat of some kind and dressed in noble attire.
"My, you know my name then? Might you be someone I know, my lovely female knight?" The unknown servant clasped her hands together as she smiles at the berserker saber.
"Saber. Who is she?"
"Hm? I thought Rulers could discern a servants true name?" Issen whispered to Jeanne, but winced as a another wave of pain went through him.
"Please focus on healing, Issen-Kun." Jeanne scolded the master.
"...." The saber servant continued to stare at the newcomer, annoying Jeanne Alter with the silence.
"Answer me." She ordered.
"I can tell even from that heart that's carried away by this killing chaos. After all, her beauty has been burned into my eyes. The girl who has been praised as the Flower of Versailles. She is---Marie Antoinette."
"Queen Marie Antoinette!?" Mashu gasped.
"Yes! Thank you, for calling my name! And as long as I have this name, No matter how foolish it may be, I will act out my role. Ms Dragon-Witch-who-is-causing-trouble-in-my-beloved-country, It's probably pointless, but allow me to ask you a question." The now named Marie pointed dramatically at Jeanne Alter who looked thoroughly annoyed.
"Are you so evil that you will work this violence Even before me? Are you declaring that you are a witch who is even more foolish than me, The Queen who failed to stop a revolution?"
"…Silence. People like you have no right to be involved in this fight." Jeanne Alter sneered.
"My, why's that?"
"Do you think a Queen who was favored like a princess, And decapitated without knowing anything, would understand our spite?"
"That's true, I wouldn't know about that. That's why I really want to know about you, Dragon Witch."
Jeanne Alter paused, staring at Marie with a raised eyebrow. "...what?"
"To understand what I don't understand. That's my style. That's why I can't overlook you as you are now. Ah, Jeanne D'Arc. The Saint of my dreams!"
Issen wasn't going to say it out loud, but he was getting disturbed with this girls behaviour.
"What I understand right now is, That you're just venting your anger right now. Your reason is unknown. Your motive too, is invisible. With everything being unknown, You're just like a girl out on a Sunday, aren't you?" Marie shook her head in disapointment.
"I have no respect for someone like that. Together with, That Jeanne D'Arc whose predictable and easy to understand, I will claim that hard-to-understand heart, and that whole body of yours!" Marue exclaimed.
"What..." Issen deadpanned.
"The..." Cu continued his masters thoughts.
"Fuck?" Shirou finished with a deadpan.
"U-um....come again?" Jeanne stuttered, an embarassed flush to her face.
"Ah, oh no. What a blunder. Uhm, please don't misunderstand?" Marie's cheeks became a bit rosy at her mistake.
"That was simply to mean 'As a Queen, I will make you kneel before me'."
"…It's breaking... My altar of Antoinette inside me is breaking…" Roman sounded heartbroken.
"The farce ends here. Alright. In that case, you are my enemy. Servants. Deal with that annoying princess first. Rank and file, get your asses moving and deal with that bunch!" Jeanne Alter barked.
"-No!"
"Get behind me, master!" Arturia stood in front of Issen.
The boy grunted, another bout of dizziness from blood loss hitting him.
"Indeed. This is a battlefield, so let's leave speaking at that. You're an enemy of the world right? If so, first things first--- We need to hold a requiem for all you have killed. Sorry to keep you, Amadeus. Do the Vienna like you're in a pinch!"
'What...?' Issen thought before he saw a pale man holding an instrument appear.
"Leave it to me. Noble Phantasm, Requiem For Death!"
A horrid sound was emitted from Amadeus, aimed at the enemy group.
"Another one...!! Aah, but what a splendorous and evil sound!" Assassin moaned as she covered her ears.
"Kuh, what heavy pressure...!" Lancer grit his teeth as covered his ears as well.
"Tch...!" Jeanne Alter clicked her tounge.
"Well then, farewell everyone. Au Revoir!"
Cu placed Issen on his back and hastily retreated with the others, leaving an enraged Jeanne Alter.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Train_Heartnet_0767
Train_Heartnet_0767 This chapter took a long time! The dialogue between characters was slightly annoying to write out completely.
Anyway, here's the next chapter! The next one will Issen's recovery, and the search for the dragon slayer and another saint!
Thank you for reading~!
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone