Tanuki Rise of the Yokai Clan

"No... No... Impossible! There's no way that I will make such a mistake!"

Kiritsugu was in denial and had long lost his calm as he watched the disaster caused by his hands. It was impossible for him to make such a mistake, and the explosion should cause the building to be perfectly demolished inward without causing a single damage to the surroundings.

Only the building!

This should have been the case, but the reality was different.

It was a scene that wasn't much different from one that he saw in the wartorn area or... it might be even worse since those innocent people who had just woken up in the middle of the night were suddenly swallowed by a fire, died painfully.

While people might think dying by fire was as simple as their bodies turning ash into intense heat, that wasn't the case. Dying by fire was far from simple since before they died, the oxygen in their lungs would be deprived, and their bodies would be roasted. With a fire, it was impossible for someone to die instantly without any pain. Instead, they would be tortured as they screamed in horror and pain as their bodies were burnt.

And the cause of this painful death was Kiritsugu.

Kiritsugu was unable to believe the reality and hoped that this was a nightmare, but no matter how he tried to evade it, he knew that this was the reality.

Whether they were men, women, or even children, all of them died due to the fire.

Everything was because of him.

"....."

His heart was filled with coldness as if he had been thrown into a lake in the middle of winter while naked. However, he quickly woke up and called the number of Maiya Hisau, who should be on the scene to watch over the plan from the location.

'Please be okay! Please be okay! Please be okay!

Kiritsugu prayed, but no one answered him, and the ringing of the call seemed like cutting every piece of his flesh.

Then, in the end, the call couldn't be connected.

In the worst-case scenario, Maiya Hisau died.

Everything was because of him.

Due to his mistake, Kiritsugu caused this disaster.

"No! No! No! It's impossible! Everything should be perfect! No one should be dying!"

Why?

Why did it happen to me?

Why did he make a mistake?

His heart was constantly tortured with guilt as he had caused damage that shouldn't have been done, yet soon, he killed his heart and fell deeper into the abyss. Unlike his previous hysteria-like state, he was as calm as a precise machine, as if the previous blunder didn't happen at all.

While Kiritsugu wished to cry at this moment, he knew that he didn't have time to be weak, or rather, how could he be weak when he had caused this great mistake?

Kiritsugu might be sad, but even so, it didn't mean that he was going to be drowned by it. Instead, he needed to move on, so their sacrifice wouldn't be meaningless.

Erasing the sadness in his heart, Kirutsugu aimed his sniper once again, waiting for the Master of Lancer and Lancer to appear, yet watching the destruction before him, he knew that they should have died. His plan was successful, and he swiftly eliminated one of the Masters on this Holy Grail. Even though he had caused a lot of damage to the surrounding area and killed many people, everything was for the peace of the world.

This was a necessary sacrifice so the world could become a better place.

---

On the side of the building where Kiritsugu couldn't see, a black figure snickered and giggled when he saw Kiritsugu's expression.

Watching those people who were confident in their plan, yet in the end, were crushed, made him happy.

Still, while everything might have been planned by Tamazuki, everything wouldn't go smoothly if Kiritsugu wasn't lunatic enough to blast an entire hotel building.

Did Kiritsugu not think of the aftermath of this destruction?

Even if he was an Assassin, he was also quite knowledgeable about the current magic world, so he knew how ridiculous Kiritsugu's plan was.

Nevertheless, when he saw Kiritsugu's calmness, he couldn't help but frown since, even as an Assassin, he didn't have a hobby of killing people wantonly. He wasn't a terrorist, and he was just an assassin, someone whose job was to kill people, so he either killed someone for money or for his Master.

He didn't kill anyone for fun like Uryu Ryuunosuke.

Assassin also wasn't like Kiritsugu, who could betray his ally and also kill all the innocent people who were present.

Still, at the same time, Assassin was glad that he didn't have Kiritsugu as his Master since he knew if he had Kiritsugu as his Master, then he wouldn't know when he was glad. Suddenly, he thought his meeting with Tamazuki was good, and he couldn't wait to work under him.

'Assassin, have you found Emiya Kiritsugu?'

Hearing the voice of his current Master, Assassin, showed a coldness before he acted like nothing happened, showing his utmost loyalty.

"Yes, Master, he is here."

That answer brought excitement to his current sick Master.

---

With everything ended, Kiritsugu stood up and cleaned up everything. He didn't need to waste his time waiting for Lancer and the Master since he knew that they died, so he thought to go out to save Maiya and the other people. Maiya was a Magus, after all, so there might be a chance she was still alive from this explosion. The others were also the same since even if it was only a small chance, he wanted to see them with his own eyes, but at the same time, he also hesitated since, due to the commotion, the other Masters might be attracted to this place.

This might bring him unnecessary attention or, even worse, danger.

Moreover, with his situation as a fugitive, Kiritsugu's movement was also limited.

"......"

Kiritsugu looked at the Command Spells on his hand before he gritted his teeth and decided to look at the aftermath since he definitely wouldn't leave until he saw Maiya's dead body.

Kiritsugu had made up his mind, but suddenly he heard a noise from behind.

"Emiya Kiritsugu."

Kiritsugu didn't waste his time talking and aimed his assault rifle at this intruder who called his name. He had already made a single mistake, so he couldn't make any more mistakes.

However, before he was able to pull the trigger, his hand was stabbed with a knife.

Then, soon after, several figures jumped out of the dark and were ready to kill him!

'Assassin!'

Kiritsugu was full of despair as he watched several Assassins jump out from the dark, ready to kill him.

'No, I don't have enough time!'

Whether it was his other plan or summoning Saber through the Command Spell, Kiritsugu knew that it was too late. Suddenly, he felt despair.

Was everything going to end like this?

Maiya... Irisviel... Illya...

One by one, the faces of those he held dear flashed before his mind.

'No, I can't die!'

Yet, everything was meaningless.

Even if Kiritsugu had a Magic known as "Time Accel," which was capable of enhancing his personal speed, it was meaningless in front of Servant.

Even if the Servant was the weakest Servant, Assassin.

"Assassin, stop!"

When Kiritsugu was filled with despair as he thought that he was going to die, Kirei Kotomine's voice echoed throughout the space.

All the Assassins stopped their movement at the same time.

Kiritsugu saw the blinding silver light of the blade was just about to cut his neck, stabbing his heart and various other parts of his body. While his body was drenched with a cold sweat, he looked up at the figure in the dark.

Soon, the figure of Kirei Kotomine, who was dressed in a priest suit, approached Kiritsugu with a smile.

When Kiritsugu saw this smile, he felt a strange sense of uneasiness inside his heart.

"Emiya Kiritsugu. How about we have a chat for a moment?"