Emiya Shirou doesn't want to work overtime

Emiya mentally grumbled, whether it was the Rengoku-san he had encountered before, or this strange man with a Nichirin Blade and a boar's head mask he was facing now.

Anyway, they were saying things that were completely incomprehensible.

"and many more!"

Emiya reached out to stop the man in front of him, wanting to ask him some questions first.

He seemed to have explained why he wanted to take the Nichirin Blade from his own hand, but Emiya couldn't understand his reason.

"What are you waiting for!"

The man wearing the pig's head mask seemed completely unconcerned about what Emiya wanted to say, or how much confusion his behavior caused others.

He held his serrated Nichirin Blade in his hand, and his figure suddenly vanished at that moment.

As if appearing in a flash, he appeared in front of Emiya Shirou.

"!"

Emiya Shirou's pupils contracted sharply.

"So fast!"

Emiya thought to himself and just in time raised his bright red Nichirin Blade to block it.

"Listen to what people are saying!"

Seeing the boar-headed boy charging at him without listening to him, Shirou Emiya had no choice but to shout loudly, hoping that the man in front of him would listen.

"Interesting! Interesting! We can talk about it after the fight!"

The man wearing the boar's head mask had no intention of harming Shirou. He originally planned to stop in front of Shirou immediately before making his move, and then reach out to snatch the Nichirin Blade from Shirou's hand, who was frozen in shock.

He wasn't worried at all about losing control of his strength and slashing the sword down; this showed his extreme confidence in his body control.

However, seeing his attack so easily intercepted, he suddenly became interested in the man in front of him.

Hearing such an unreasonable answer, Shirou Emiya felt a surge of urge to vomit blood.

If it weren't for the fact that it was broad daylight, Emiya might have actually thought that the performance artist in front of him was a demon in disguise.

There's no such thing as someone who goes around slashing people; they're not some kind of murderer.

They didn't give us any room for communication at all!

Emiya could sense that the man in front of him had no murderous intent towards him, only a fighting spirit that burst forth from his body like flames.

"snort----!"

Two streams of intense heat burst forth from his hood.

Immediately afterwards, an absolutely terrifying force ripped from his hand, causing Shirou Emiya's body to bounce away like a ball. His feet slid forcefully on the ground as he struggled to stabilize himself.

When he finally stopped, Shirou Emiya realized that his hands were starting to go numb.

The hooded man swung his arm holding the Nichirin Blade, and shouted excitedly at Emiya.

"You've made me serious. My name is Hashibira Inosuke. What's your name?"

In Hashibira Inosuke's eyes, being able to block such a powerful attack was enough to prove that he had strength comparable to Inosuke's; it was the power that Inosuke had gathered all of his strength to unleash.

"Shirou Emiya, I think..."

Seeing an opportunity to communicate, Emiya planned to quickly explain the situation to the man in front of him.

But Inosuke Hashibira didn't seem to have any intention of giving Emiya time to explain the situation.

"Oh, a hyena, is it? It seems our encounter was inevitable. A boar and a wolf are bound to fight to the death. Let's continue our duel! The battle will not stop until you hand over your Nichirin Blade!"

With a loud laugh, Inosuke Hashibira grabbed his Nichirin Blade and charged toward Emiya.

In his hands, the pair of fang-like Nichirin Blades gleamed with a cold light. Under Inosuke Hashibira's wielding, they transformed into a sharp blade of light, like a thunderbolt, mercilessly slashing towards Emiya's face.

He wasn't worried at all whether his fierce attack would injure the man in front of him.

However, in Inosuke's eyes, how could a man who could withstand his powerful attack not be able to withstand such an attack?

"Ugh!!! Why can't we communicate?!"

Emiya said that it was difficult to communicate with someone whose mind was only focused on fighting, and he did not want to fight the man in front of him.

We're all on the same side, can't we communicate properly instead of resorting to fighting?

Emiya felt a wave of despair wash over him.

However, their interaction was merely a friendly sparring match; neither of them used any of the breathing techniques used to slay demons, and they fought solely based on their individual skills and strength.

"Qiang!"

Amidst the crisp clash of weapons, Emiya twirled his Nichirin Blade, deflecting the incoming attack to the side.

Using this force, his entire body was pushed backward.

Just as Hashibira Inosuke was about to strike, Emiya quickly threw his Nichirin Blade to the ground.

"Wait! I don't want my Nichirin Blade anymore!"

Hashibira Inosuke was completely unprepared for Emiya Shirou's actions, and his movements came to an abrupt halt.

"You don't want the Nichirin Blade anymore? Here, take it. I'm not fighting anymore!"

Emiya really didn't want to fight with anyone.

"Why did you give up your Nichirin Blade? Our duel isn't over yet! Pick up your Nichirin Blade! Fight me!"

He was furious and jumped around, picking up the Nichirin Blade on the ground and throwing it towards Emiya's position, but Emiya acted as if he didn't see the Nichirin Blade and had no intention of catching it.

After all, Emiya is able to produce and sell his own Nichirin Blades, so he doesn't have a great need for them.

"The battle is over. You won, and I concede!"

Emiya spread his hands, indicating that he had laid down his weapon and surrendered.

"Pick it up, and fight me!"

Inosuke Hashibira looks extremely impatient.

"We won't fight! We can't win!"

"You think you can beat me? Fight me then!"

He clutched his hood, unsure of what to do next.

Emiya found himself suddenly having the man in his grasp.

His thinking seemed unusually simple.

Emiya pondered this in his mind, watching Hashibira Inosuke quickly utter a long string of words.

"Yes, you fought me for the Nichirin Blade. Now that you have the Nichirin Blade, it means you have won. Since you have won, you have the Nichirin Blade. Now that you have the Nichirin Blade, I have no power to fight you. You have won, and you have achieved your goal of taking the Nichirin Blade."

Hashibira Inosuke froze on the spot as if his computer had crashed, then threw down the Nichirin Blade in his hand, squatted down, and stretched out his fingers as if counting something.

"I won, so I got the Nichirin Blade. No, I didn't win."

"But if Shirou doesn't have the Nichirin Blade, does that mean I won? But that doesn't make sense, I haven't even fought him yet, how could I have won?"

"But if I can get my hands on his Nichirin Blade later, then I'll still win?"

He stretched out his fingers in a rather confused manner.

Emiya Shirou also looked at him with a hint of unease.

"So that means I won?"

Hashibira Inosuke asked Emiya Shirou with some uncertainty.

"Yeah, you won!"

He nodded vigorously.

"Hahaha! Since I've won, you're now my newest underling, the King of the Mountains!"

As if something had suddenly become clear to him, he grabbed the Nichirin Blade that had been tossed aside, stood up, and pointed at Shirou Emiya standing to the side.

At this moment, Emiya's head was once again covered in black lines.

"What kind of mountain king?"

Chapter Thirty-Three: The Final Selection Begins

"The King of the Mountains, he is indeed the King of the Mountains!"

Inosuke Hashibira stomped his feet angrily.

"Um, Inosuke, is it alright to call me that? Do you know which direction Mount Fujikaze is in?"

Emiya still couldn't accept being called the Mountain King by others; it was simply too shameful.

"Mount Fujikashi? I don't know, but my intuition tells me it's in that direction."

Hashibira Inosuke shook his head, then pointed to a direction with a statement of certainty.

He learned about the final trial of Fujikasane Mountain from a Demon Slayer Corps member who had mistakenly entered his living area.

As a boy raised by wild boars, his mind was extremely simple. He couldn't possibly ask the Demon Slayer Corps member where he should go or how to get there.

He was merely asking for a direction, a general direction of the final trial at Mount Fuji.

He relied on his senses to rush here.

"Over there?"

Emiya looked in the direction Inosuke Hashibira was pointing, and then picked up the map that Inosuke had thrown to the ground because of the unexpected situation.

It seems to have been stepped on during the battle, and now it's almost impossible to see clearly.

"It seems we can only trust Inosuke."

Emiya figured that since they were already near Mount Fujikasa, everyone they met in the area, except for himself who was a complete outsider, should know where Mount Fujikasa was.

I just hope Inosuke Hashibira doesn't lead us astray.

"This knife—"