They were none other than Kanshou and Bakuya, the weapons most commonly used by Heroic Spirit Emiya.
"Shall we continue, Dracule Mihawk?"
"I assume you don't plan to let this battle end here."
Arton exhaled deeply, his expression serious as he addressed Mihawk.
"That's precisely what I intend."
"I still haven't seen your Unlimited Blade Works in action."
Mihawk smirked, raising his blade once again, clearly prepared to continue.
Mihawk chuckled, shifting into his combat stance.
"Then I'll ask you to keep me entertained for a while."
"Perhaps soon, I might see the ground filled with unlimited swords."
Arton smirked, pushing off the deck with a powerful leap.
In an instant, he appeared right in front of Mihawk.
A flurry of clashing metal reverberated across the Baratie's hull as their weapons collided repeatedly.
Uta, Carina, Zoro, and the others watched the battle intently, their gazes fixed on the duel.
At first, they expected Arton to unleash some kind of new power.
But as the fight progressed, they were surprised to find that Arton was simply wielding his dual short blades against Mihawk.
As the battle dragged on, Arton's body began to accumulate wounds.
In contrast, Mihawk remained unscathed, though his expression showed a hint of confusion.
Finally, after leaving a massive gash running from Arton's shoulder to his waist and watching as the crystalline swords patched the wound, Mihawk paused.
"Arton, are you planning to continue fighting like this?"
"Using swords to mend your body is novel, I'll admit."
"But that's not what I came to see."
"And even if you can patch yourself up, if this keeps going, you'll die."
Mihawk furrowed his brows.
Arton lifted his head, his gaze somewhat dazed as he looked at Mihawk.
"I won't die. I have my reasons for fighting this way."
"Don't worry. I'll show you the unlimited... unlimited… Just wait, Mihawk… Mihawk…"
As he spoke, the confusion on Arton's face deepened.
"Your condition seems off, Arton."
Mihawk turned to Kaya, his expression serious.
"I think you should have your ship's doctor take a look at him."
Arton let out a faint chuckle.
"Are you showing me compassion, Mihawk?"
"I just don't want to kill you before I've seen what I came for, Arton," Mihawk replied flatly.
Mihawk lifted his blade, pointing it at Arton, his expression serious:
"If this continues, you will truly die!"
Arton nodded slightly.
"Is that so? If it must be, then let me die once."
With that, Arton charged at Mihawk, his words leaving Mihawk puzzled.
This time, Arton's twin blades were already shattered.
And yet, he didn't project new weapons.
Instead, he clenched his fists, directing the crystalline sword protruding from his wounded knuckles toward Mihawk.
Mihawk frowned deeply at the sight but, after a brief hesitation, thrust his black blade directly at Arton's chest.
Shlick!
Blood splattered.
The black blade pierced through Arton's chest once again.
Arton's crystalline blade stopped just short of Mihawk.
Witnessing this, Uta, Kaya, and the others—though aware that Arton wouldn't perish—couldn't help but feel a wave of concern.
"Arton, my patience is nearly…" Mihawk started, but then stopped abruptly, noticing a strange phenomenon.
"Wait, what's happening to you?"
Arton's body was suddenly enveloped in a brilliant white light.
He slid off Mihawk's black blade and collapsed to the ground.
Moments later, the glow dissipated.
Standing before Mihawk was a fully healed Arton, without a trace of injury on his body.
Arton now sported short red hair, brown eyes, and a small patch of white strands in his bangs.
A faint scar graced his left cheek, and his attire had changed.
Compared to his previous look, Arton now wore a sleek black trench coat.
Seeing this, Uta, Kaya, and the others breathed a collective sigh of relief.
Having witnessed transformations before, they immediately understood what had happened: Arton had advanced the Emiya Shirou template to the next stage.
In other words, Arton's physical strength had been fully restored, his injuries healed, and he now possessed an even stronger version of the powers tied to Emiya Shirou's template.
*
Whitey Bay: "I knew it—this man wouldn't die so easily."
Charlotte Smoothie: "Phew, Arton! You really had me worried there for a moment. You're the husband I've chosen—if you'd died so easily, I'd have been in a real bind!"
Kozuki Hiyori: "That's wonderful, Arton has advanced further!"
Ain: "Has Arton grown even stronger? But this version of him doesn't seem to be the same Emiya Shirou with the red coat."
Tashigi: "Could it be that there's a version of Shirou before the Heroic Spirit Emiya?"
Gion: "His appearance and attire don't seem drastically different from before. Does this mean that Arton's current strength isn't much greater than earlier?"
Doll: "Regardless, Arton must have some kind of new power now."
*
Arton's lips curled into a smile as he faced Mihawk, who stood in slight surprise.
"Well then, let's start the second round, Mihawk."
"You wanted to witness the infinite swords, didn't you?"
"Although it won't be exactly the same as when I faced Shiki."
"This body is still a counterfeit, and the power is borrowed."
"But I'll let you see it—that power known as Unlimited Blade Works."
As Arton spoke, a card with an Archer insignia engraved on the back appeared in his hand.
"Interesting. Then let me witness it properly, Arton!"
Mihawk grinned and swung his black blade toward Arton, unleashing a soaring slash.
In an instant, a ten-meter-long emerald green flying slash surged rapidly toward Arton.