Chapter 18: Decision

The hooded man arrived at Itadori and said, "It's Itadori Yuji, isn't it?"

The pink-haired boy looked at the man and immediately recognized him, it was Matou Kariya. - "Mister Matou? What are you doing here at night?" - Itadori said.

The hooded man approached. - "Lately I haven't been able to sleep well... What are you doing here? Shouldn't you protect your master?" - said Mr. Matou.

"It's a long story... I discovered something I didn't expect." - Itadori said.

"Something you didn't expect? What do you mean?" - said Mr. Matou.

Itadori sighed as he sat down on a bench. - "My master is fighting together with a man called Kiritsugu, the master of Saber..."

"The girl in armor..." - said Lord Matou.

"She follows everything he asks... If I could avoid this guy..." - Itadori said.

"It looks like things aren't going very well for you..." - said Mr. Matou, who sat next to Itadori.

"Yeah... Speaking of which, that Tohsaka came to talk to my Master so we can form an alliance." - Itadori said, looking straight into Kariya's eyes.

"W-What?! Y-you didn't accept it, did you?" - said Mr Matou.

"We accept with certain exceptions... It's a long story, but one of the main targets will be you." - Itadori said.

"Damn.... I'm screwed!" - Kariya said, putting his hands on his head.

"But they won't focus on you for now.... First they will focus on the Rider Master, since he is not part of the three founding families, I don't quite understand." - Itadori said.

"I understand... The thing is, this isn't the first Holy Grail War..." - Kariya said.

"This I know, this is the fourth, isn't it?" - Itadori said.

"It turns out that the first Holy Grail War wasn't a war..." - continued Kariya.

This surprises Itadori. - "What? I didn't expect that."

"It turns out that there are three founding families, the Matous, the Tohsakas and the Einzberns." - Mr Matou continued.

'I can't believe this... the Einzberns are Irisviel's family!' - thought Itadori.

"In the past, it was just a peaceful ritual for one of the three families to reach the root..." - Kariya said.

"The Root? What is that?!" - asked Itadori.

"Your master is part of the three founding families and doesn't know what your wish is?" - Kariya asked.

"Her desire isn't that root..." - Itadori said.

"Anyway... The Root is a source of universal truth and the origin of all magic and supernatural phenomena, located outside of time and space." - said Kariya.

"So that's why there are only crazy people in this place..." - Itadori said.

"The Root contains all knowledge of the universe, past, present and future. Accessing it means understanding all the secrets of existence. Many magicians believe that reaching the Root will grant them unlimited powers and the ability to transcend human limitations, including immortality ." - said Kariya.

Itadori didn't believe the information Kariya gave him.

"Within magical societies, reaching the Root is considered the pinnacle of magical achievement. Reaching it would bring great prestige and recognition. For some magicians, reaching the Root is a way of completing their personal and professional journey, achieving the ultimate goal of their magical practice. In short, the search for the Root is motivated by a combination of thirst for knowledge, desire for power, search for recognition and personal aspiration for transcendence." - said Kariya.

"I understand why there are so many wizards wanting to win this war." - Itadori said.

"Not all mages wish to reach the root... Changing the subject, Yuji, I want to make a deal with you." - said Kariya.

"A deal? What exactly would it be?" - asked Itadori.

"It's more like an alliance... I want you to help me." - said Kariya.

Itadori was surprised.

"Our alliance will be like this, you help me save Sakura and I will help you win the Holy Grail." - proclaimed Kariya.

"Don't you want to win the war?" - asked Itadori.

"I just don't want her to get involved with this!.... Please help me." - Kariya said, looking into Itadori's eyes.

The boy was unsure of what to do.

'Tohsaka will focus on Rider, if the King of Conquerors dies... I will have to face Gilgamesh, maybe Berserker will help me defeat him. And finally, I will have to fight Saber... What an insane idea...' - Itadori thought a lot about the subject.

"Look... You don't need to tell me now, I always walk around this square, when you decide... Just look for me here." - said Mr Kariya saying goodbye to Itadori.

"See you later, Lord Matou!" - Itadori said saying goodbye to Kariya.

The pink haired boy wandered the streets heading back to his base. His indecision killed him inside. Itadori was looking at some shop windows, and something caught his attention...

Apparently Saber's new motorcycle was parked at a Fast Food. - "S-Saber?!" - Itadori felt your presence inside the establishment.

"Don't tell me she..." - Before he could finish speaking, the girl with golden hair opened the door in a somewhat uninhibited way

"Oh, hello Yuji!" - Saber said, eating a hamburger.

".... did you like Burger Queen?..." - Itadori said while thinking about a certain fast food with a name very similar to that.

"Don't get it wrong, Yuji! We Servants need certain things to recover our energy." - Said Saber after eating another piece of the burger.

"Hm... So that's why I feel so refreshed when I eat something." - Itadori said.

"We don't need to eat, but it doesn't hurt us to recover our energy by eating." - Saber said, handing a hamburger to Itadori.

"Ah, thank you." - Itadori said holding the burger.

"What's wrong? You seem very indifferent today... We're allies, you can tell me about anything." - Saber said worriedly.

"It's nothing, Arturia... "- Itadori said.

Knowing that Arturia wouldn't be able to take anything from Itadori, she decides to take him somewhere. - "Yuji, come with me. I want to show you a place I found." - Saber said, getting on the bike.

"Okay..." - Itadori said without question.

Itadori gets on the bike and the two go to the place Saber said.

"I discovered a really beautiful place, it's close to a forested area, so it'll take a few minutes." - said Saber.

"Could you at least give me a hint as to what it is?" - Itadori said curiously.

"You'll soon see!" - Saber said, hiding her surprise. - "Although you exaggerated in the battle against Caster, I will give you a reward."

'R-Reward?!' - thought Itadori blushing.

After some minutes...

the pair arrived on a motorcycle in a less busy area, a place surrounded by trees. - "Let's walk this trail." - said Saber.

It was already dark, but the lighting in the place made the atmosphere calmer than usual. - "What a peaceful place..." - Itadori said.

"That's right..." - Saber said, taking Itadori's hand.

The boy couldn't help but blush a little. - 'She's really uninhibited...' - Itadori thought.

After a long walk, Saber took Itadori to a large lake that was extremely well lit and bright.

The two sat next to a tree larger than the others. - "This reminds me of the last place I rested in my life..." - said Arturia in a melancholic way.

"Was Britain a beautiful place?" - asked Itadori.

"If it was? I would say it was almost a paradise, and I don't say that because I was the King of Great Britain. I say that because it was a really beautiful place..." - said Arturia with a certain pride in her former empire.

Itadori just watched Saber's happiness.

"This place reminds me of my country..." - said Saber

Itadori saw Arturia's melancholic expression, the boy approaches the girl with golden hair.

"Arturia..." Itadori was facing the girl, he saw her through her eyes that met for a brief moment.

She smiled shyly, a soft glow in her eyes, and Itadori felt his heart quicken. -'Damn, why did I call her name!... Now we're just staring at each other!!' - Itadori thought.

With determined steps, he began to cross the space that separated them. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, a nervous gesture he found charming.

"W-What's wrong, Yuji?..." - Said Saber, blushing.

When they were finally face to face, the distance between them seemed to disappear. Itadori reached out his hand, hesitantly, and she took it gently.

"Arturia.... Will you grant me this dance?" - said Itadori

The woman, surprised and flattered, smiled shyly, accepting the offered hand. With a slight nod of his head, he led her to a more open space.

Holding her gently, he guided her through the "music" in their minds, their movements synchronized and fluid. The connection between them, although recent, seemed natural and full of elegance. Each step was a wordless conversation, a dialogue of looks and smiles, while the melody supported the exchange of intimacy and trust.

The duo danced in the moonlight.

'In case we become enemies, I won't even raising my hand to you.' - thought Itadori.

Hand in hand, Yuji and Arturia danced slowly, each movement reflecting the softness of the melody. Their bodies moved in sync, as if time had slowed down just for them. Their eyes locked on each other, shy smiles appearing every now and then, each step was a testament to the growing connection between them.

Itadori saw Saber taking off her suit and letting down her golden hair. The boy couldn't help but blush, but his eyes remained glued to her.

Still holding hands, they stopped their dance and walked to the edge of the lake. Laughing softly, the man took off his shoes and encouraged the woman to do the same. With a playful touch, he pulled her into the shallow water, which was warm under the glow of the stars.

They splashed in the water, laughing and throwing little waves at each other, the formality of the dance transformed into pure and simple joy. Their laughter echoed in the night, mixing with the sound of the water. Finally, tired and happy, they stopped, still holding hands, breathing deeply and enjoying the moment of peace and complicity they shared.

'I think I've already made up my mind...' - Itadori thought looking at the moon.

The next day...

In the morning, Itadori says goodbye to Saber. - "So you're going to look for Rider, right?" - asked Itadori.

"Yes, I need to go now." - Saber said, getting into the car.

The pink-haired boy saw Saber going to look for Rider.

Itadori turned around and went to the back of the house. - 'I need to check on Iri... There's something I need to tell her.' - thought Itadori.

As the boy walked to the store, he saw that someone was waiting at the front door. It was Maya.

"Itadori... What are you doing here?" - asked the woman.

"There's something I need to talk to my Master about, could you please get out of the way?" - Itadori said with a certain tone of intensity.

Before she can form a sentence, someone opens the warehouse door. It was Kiritsugu who carried a peculiar shield in his hands.

"You're supposed to be with Saber now." - Kiritsugu said monotonously.

"What Arturia does is her problem. You are not my Master to order me to do whatever you want." - Itadori replied very dryly.

Kiritsugu just sighed. - "Do whatever you want, just don't forget our main objective..." - said Kiritsugu.

Itadori's anger grew more and more every time that man opened his mouth. The boy looked angrily at the man who ignored him again.

"You're wrong..." - Itadori said.

"What?..." - Kiritsugu turned to the boy.

"I said you're wrong! You think you know everything about people, you say you want to save humanity, but you're disgusted by it. You're disgusted by what society has made you become... It's so contradictory it makes my stomach turn You claim to be someone good, but you're just another selfish person who wants to change the world, I don't know what they did to you to become like this... But someone who has lost faith in humanity is not fit to save the world." - Itadori said.

"What are you trying to say?... You want to turn on me?" - said Kiritsugu.

"Understand as you wish..." - Itadori said, turning his face away.

Kiritsugu ignored him again and left with Maya.

Itadori was in his thoughts. - 'I'll make you understand, Kiritsugu...

You are wrong!'

End of chapter 18