Shinji Matou (Fate/EXTRA)

is the Master of Rider in the Moon Holy Grail War of Fate/EXTRA. He becomes the Master of Violet in Fate/EXTRA CCC Fox Tail.
This Shinji is a different person from the Shinji Matou of Fuyuki. While they both exist in the Fate/EXTRA universe, the only common points they have are their names and appearances. Archer notes the similarity, but calls this Shinji good-natured at heart compared to the one he knows. He thinks it may be fate to encounter him during the Holy Grail War.
==Profile==
===Background===
Shinjicastle.jpg|Shinji in front of his virtual castle
Shinji extra child.png|Child (Real World)
This Shinji is known as the gaming champion of Asia who won the world game competition 2030 of V.A.M.P, the Virtual Arcade for Massive-multi Players. He also has a notorious reputation as a freelance cracker. He has managed to avoid prosecution from the Plutocracy, while many others have been arrested for breaching International Agreement 404 by accessing unauthorized information.
While he uses the avatar of a teenager within the virtual space of his castle to answer questions in a press conference, he is actually an eight year old child. After a seventy-eight hour long session online, he learned of the Holy Grail War. He was hospitalized for his poor physical condition soon after due to developing somasthenia from staying in the virtual world so long without rest. The exact time of his return is circumspect due to increased surveillance by the Plutocracy. He posted that he was not in critical condition on his blog after being discharged, and noted that "the Holy Grail will be mine."
===Appearance===
Shinji looks identical to his counterpart in Fate/stay night; however, he differs slightly by wearing a purple dress shirt beneath his school uniform jacket. In Fate/EXTRA Last Encore, after he becomes a Master, he ditched his school uniform and wears a gray suit with a black tie.
In Fate/EXTRA CCC, he has an alternate costume.
===Personality===
Shinji honestly and fully believes himself to be the strongest Master in the entire Holy Grail War. Using his experience as the Asian champion, he believes there is no way for him to lose the competition. His arrogance towards others is almost palatable, and he has taken the natural position that he is superior to all others. While he has a number of friends and followers during the preliminaries, he feels most are simply pretending to be his equals. They simply wish to steal naturally deserved attention away from him because they are all boring compared to him. He claims to like the Initial Protagonist out of all of his classmates, calling him the "ultimate sidekick" because someone so boring is unable to steal the spotlight from him.
He thinks he is the best at everything he tries to accomplish, and follows that nobody is born equal and can never reach the level of the naturally gifted even with practice. He holds an especially high opinion of himself, and even if he makes a blatant mistake, he will instantly blame it on others. While he hates the classes, he tries to teach others, only for them to point out he was teaching them incorrectly. He claims with no doubt that he was correct, and the problem lies with them. Even upon losing in battle, he claims that Rider is the sole party at fault for the loss. He simply did what he was supposed to do as the best, so she is the one who ruined everything by becoming his Servant. He is noted as being obsessive compulsive, reflected by his disturbingly organized desk.
He treats people like cattle rather than friends, and believes helping others out of kindness is pointless. Unless there is something to be gained, helping the weak leads to accomplishing nothing. While he is especially popular among the female students, he thinks little of the small posse that follows him around. The popularity seems strange to onlookers, and it feels more unnatural than mysterious to the Initial Protagonist. He is noted for his super-aggressive approach towards flirting that usually provides results, and he claims that he is not afraid of slapping those who ignore him or talk back to him. Even after the preliminaries end, he is still shown to be popular among some of the female Masters who follow him around.
While he prides himself for being popular, he is disliked by most of the other Masters. He is thought of as a socially retarded person when he attempts to speak with others by both them and even his own Servant. Archer calls him so dense that he may actually warp space around himself. The general opinion is that he is a fool, and most make fun of him constantly. They call him clueless and careless, and easy to manipulate, as insults and flattery can get him to easily spill details about his Servant. All three possible Servants of the Protagonist truly hate him, and wish to put him in his place. The Protagonist notes his annoying donkey bray-like laugh as a defining feature.
Despite all of his arrogance towards others, he is really an eight-year-old boy who has no idea about the true nature of the War. He simply believes the entire situation to be a well-done game he needs to win. He constantly comments upon the graphics, and believes that the winner will receive a title and prize money. He has no idea that those who lose actually die, and offers the Protagonist the position of his lackey or the chance to forfeit in exchange for possibly getting some of the money later. He is only participating to prove his own prowess by winning the title he believes is granted to the winner of the "game". Upon defeating the Protagonist, he is truly happy to see them lose, but lacks any true knowledge of their impending death. He thinks the deletion is simply a well done cut scene for the loser.
Upon his own defeat, he instantly claims to hate the "game" because he lost, and tries to get the Protagonist to let him win because his loss was a simple fluke. It is an obvious fact that only his superiority would allow for him to win the next round. When that fails, he thinks he can simply log out, and find their real identity to get back at them sometime in the future. He quickly falls into absolute despair upon finding out the truth. He believed only the avatars were erased, and refuses to accept the possibility of death in a virtual world. He begs for help from Rider and the Protagonist, still claiming that it is all their fault and that they owe him. Rin claims that he is a moron who does not have a clue how to fight for his own life, and his is the fate of any magus who treats the Holy Grail War like a game.
In Fate/EXTRA CCC, he has become much more humble, though is still prone to acting childishly, as shown by his argument with Elizabeth.
In Fate/EXTRA CCC Fox Tail, Gawain describes Shinji's daring personality to be similar to Sir Bors as the two tried to sneak to peak into the women's baths.
====Relationships====
;Sakura Matou
:His persona during the preliminaries, believing Sakura to be his sister, is very possessive of her. He scolds her not to skip Archery to go over to "their" house all of the time, and it is speculated that she wears long sleeves to hide the bruises left by him. She is really just an NPC with a personality loaded to act as a sister to him, and he is able to break free from the simulated memories by realizing that fact. Despite not actually having a sister, he does claim that he has always wanted one. While also under the persona, he thinks Rin is the only one who could understand how lonely he is at the top. This leads to him attempting to flirt with her, but he claims he dislikes her attitude and believes he intimidated her.
;Rider
:The relationship between Shinji and Rider is like that of siblings with Rider taking the role of his wild big sister. Hakuno thinks of them as a good pair of troublemakers that are perfect for each other. While Masters and Servants are paired by compatibility, Hakuno does not know if it will prove to be constructive chemistry in battle or not in their case. Rider berates and makes fun of him constantly much to his own annoyance. She regards them as a pair of villains, and mentions that she admires that Shinji is evil enough to give a friend a beat down, commenting that the darkness of his grubby little soul is impressive. He constantly argues with her over the negative comments, but it only makes her enjoy his reactions even more.
;Hakuno Kishinami
:Hakuno regards him as a friend of sorts they cannot bring themselves to hate. He generally treats Hakuno as an old friend, but also enjoys gloating over them. He constantly comments on their lack of skill compared to him, and fully believes that they have no chance against him. He is initially very relaxed about their match, but becomes more on edge as the days pass and they gain more information on his Servant. He becomes childish in his attempts to block their progress due to becoming more worried about them as opponents. He later admits that he truly hates them, and believes them to be an incompetent piece of trash. He goes as far as to propose that they lose on purpose so that he can save energy. The battle is unfair to him because he still has to waste strength as the victor even though the outcome is already decided in his mind.
==Role==
===Fate/EXTRA===
ShinjiRider.png|Shinji and Rider
Fate-extra-saber vs rider.jpg
During the preliminaries, Shinji, stripped of his memories and given those of a student, is presented as a popular student. He is friendly with a number of students, including Hakuno Kishinami, and especially the females of the class. He is close to the Initial Protagonist, and they have known each other since spring of freshman year. He attempts to flirt with Rin, but their exchange instead comes to blows between them. Once Leo transfers into the class, he is distraught to find that his followers have abandoned him. He quickly gets over the shock, calling them sows sucking up to someone with a bigger pea-brain than theirs. While complaining about Leo, he is intimidated by him, and feigns calmness when Leo apologizes to him for causing him trouble. He manages to break out of the brainwashing on the final day upon realizing Sakura is not his sister.
Shinji and Rider are the opponents during the first week. They are confirmed to be opponents on the second day due to a system error not deciding the opponent on the first day, and Shinji quickly gloats that it will be easy to defeat Hakuno. He claims that even he feels slightly pained due to their former friendship. They confront each other in the Arena soon after, but the fight quickly ends due to SE.RA.PH not allowing battles there. He is shown confronting Rin the next day, where he accidentally reveals details about Rider while gloating to her about his Servant's strength. He begins to become more nervous upon realizing the Hakuno also heard the details, and steals all books possibly relating to Rider from the library the next day. He hides one in the Arena to make it more entertaining, since he is forced to place it somewhere due to the fact that it is constructed with a fairly powerful program that makes him unable to delete the folder.
Before lying in wait for Hakuno to search for the book, he encounters Dan Blackmore outside of the Church, and Dan, a devout believer, chides him for being loud in a place of worship. Shinji gives an insincere apology, claims to be an atheist, and then becomes angered at being talked down to by him. He and Rider wait in the Arena for the Hakuno to search for the book, and ambush them after they obtain it. He attempts to reclaim it, but he is forced to retreat after becoming injured and due to SE.RA.PH possibly intervening if it continues any longer. He childishly blocks off the Arena with magic sigils the next day, having placed one on his desk and another on the nurse's office door. He modifies the Arena the day after to provide Rider with more treasure in order to increase her strength. He and Hakuno engage in a treasure hunt to keep Rider's power from increasing any further. They engage in the Elimination Battle on the final day, and Rider's defeat strips Shinji of his Command Seals. He begins to be deleted after having just learned the true nature of the Holy Grail War from Rider. His final words are "I'm only eight years old! I do not want to die yet-" before he fully fades away from existence.
===Last Encore===
Shinji_stabs_Hakuno.png|Shinji stabs Hakuno
Shinji_before_fading_away_LE.png|Shinji as he fades away
During the preliminaries of Fate/EXTRA Last Encore, Shinji is the boyfriend of Misao Amari and a friend of the male Hakuno. They seem to live a normal student life until the selection of the remaining 28 Masters over the 100 and plus candidates. When Hakuno joins him and asks him where Amari is, Shinji tells him that she is in a safe place and to follow him in order to not get murdered. As they run, Shinji asks Hakuno if he is really his friend and then proceeds to stab him with a knife, asking him to die for his sake since Shinji is his best friend and that he already wanted to die to begin with.
Shinji then says that he came to this place in order to become a game champion and that Hakuno had nothing, stabbing him again. He leaves Hakuno to die, qualifying himself to become one of the Masters.
In the first floor, he reveals himself as the mayor of the city built there and offers Hakuno to sell off his Saber to live peacefully with all the other Masters on the floor who had already given up on the Holy Grail War and sold their Servants. When Hakuno refuses, Shinji activates a firewall to separate Hakuno and Saber and it is shown that he already used 2 of his 3 Command Spells.Fate/EXTRA Last Encore - Episode 02: Dead face He summons Darius III, Fergus mac Róich and Leonidas I as Berserkers in order to fight Saber.
He is impressed when Saber tricks the Berserkers into breaking through the firewall, and shocked that Hakuno managed to defeat his police girls. He is shocked again when Rin Tohsaka arrives on a flying motorcycle and escapes with the two.
In a flashback, he looked on in horror as his Rider defeated an astronaut Servant and his Master. The Moon Mile Ladder arrived to take them to the second floor, but he was traumatized after having betrayed his friend Hakuno and then killed even more people. He resolved to stay on the first floor and rework it into a paradise where Masters don't have to be killed. Amazed, Rider agreed to support him.
The next day, he summons his Berserkers to defend his office, but Rin stays behind to stall them while Hakuno and Saber enter. They find him on the roof, which resembles a school. He accepts their challenge and floods the city before calling on Rider for battle. He stands at the captain's wheel of the Golden Hind and shouts instructions to Rider. Eventually, Rider is mortally wounded. She asks him to sever their contract so that he will not die with her, but he refuses to abandon her. He solemnly says he did what he did because he wanted to accomplish something and leave behind a legacy. Hakuno says he doesn't care what his motives are, but comments that he doesn't hate him anymore.
Rider says his guilt over betraying his friend is lifted. Shinji defensively says Hakuno is not his friend as he dies.
===Fate/EXTRA CCC===
In the prologue, he, Hakuno and Leonardo B. Harwey enjoy their student life. After he found out that Hakuno and Kiara Sesshouin knew each other, he becomes jealous about their relationship. When he was about to be devoured by BB's shadows, Hakuno tries to save him but Shinji knew he could not be saved and shouted at Hakuno to run.Fate/EXTRA CCC - Prologue
Shinji would reunite with Hakuno when he wakes up and works with the student council on a way to escape. Upon recovering his memories in chapter 4, he was shocked to know he was defeated in the first round.Fate/EXTRA CCC - Chapter 4: Anesthetic Castle of Obstruction - Sick, Home Sink
Shinji sides with BB and becomes the master of Elizabeth Báthory. In the 11th floor, he created a monster Shinji-Tank to fight Hakuno. Shinji teleports away as soon as Shinji-Tank explodes. Meltryllis later sneaks up on and absorbs Shinji. Shinji would end up in the Innercore organism where he could not escape. Hakuno would later encounter Shinji and helps him find the exit, Meltryllis would appear after Hakuno defeats Elizabeth. She was surprise to find Shinji with Hakuno and when she was about to attack, the student council teleports Hakuno, Shinji and the servant to safety.Fate/EXTRA CCC - Chapter 5: The Pure-Bred's Consanguinity - Iron Maiden Princess
Shinji reflects on his secret plan. Shinji helps Hakuno to escape by creating seaweed walls to temporary stall Meltryllis. Shinji had infected himself with a virus before he was absorbed, which drastically lowered his level and thus hers after she absorbed him. As Shinji fades away, he reveals to Hakuno that he always hated Hakuno but he was happy to know that Hakuno would remember him and even cry for him after he was defeated in the Moon Cell Holy Grail war. He was content and calls them a friend before he dies.Fate/EXTRA CCC - Chapter 6: Critical Pleasure - Alter Ego / S
===Fate/EXTRA CCC Fox Tail===
==Abilities==
Magecraft no longer exists in the world of Extra, but those with Magic Circuits are able to digitalize their souls in order to interact with virtual worlds. Shinji comes from a family of magi, and he is known as a talented Spiritron-hacker. While most people dislike him, they acknowledge his abilities as a hacker of incomparable talent and the strength of his Servant. Rin believes they are quite formidable, and comments that Hakuno does not have a great chance against them.
He is able to modify his own looks to match the avatar he normally uses, unlike most other Masters who use the default look of a Tsukumihara student. He displays the ability to hack into SE.RA.PH and disrupt the system, which could lead to severe punishments if he were caught. His abilities allow him to temporarily block the arena by placing two magic sigils to create an anomaly in the area's programming code. The flow from the sigils, like tributaries feeding a river, needs to be blocked in order to unseal it. He can also hack it to generate more treasure within the Arena to allow for Rider to grow even stronger. During battle he uses the code casts, "shock(32)" to damage and stun the enemy Servant and "loss_lck (64);" to reduce their strength.
==Development==
===Reception===
*In the Type-Moon's 10th Anniversary Character Poll, Shinji was ranked 191st.
==References==
Category:Characters in Fate/EXTRA
Category:Magi
Category:Masters
Category:Wizards
Category:Humans
Category:Introduced in 2010