EVA: Shinji Ikari Returns from Tiga

Chapter 152 I Want to Be With You Forever

"Ayanami."

As soon as I entered the medical department's corridor, I saw Rei Ayanami, dressed in casual clothes, standing at the end of the corridor, gazing alone at the bright moon in the night sky.

“Ikari-kun…!”

Upon hearing Shinji Ikari's call, a hint of surprise flashed across Reisei Ayanami's desolate face... Unable to conceal her heightened emotions, she ran towards Shinji Ikari.

"How...how is the injury?"

Shinji Ikari immediately noticed Rei Ayanami's hands, which were wrapped in layers of bandages, and asked her with some concern.

Because in the highest level of battle against the Angels, the synchronization rate between the human body and the EVA is close to 100%, if the sympathetic nerves are not severed in time... the injury to the EVA will really have a counter-effect on the candidate.

At this moment, Rei Ayanami had all her fingers cut off because she grabbed the Eleventh Angel's ribbon... As a result, her own fingers also suffered necrosis.

"I'm fine... Compared to Asuka and the others, my injury is nothing."

Indeed, apart from Unit 8, which was positioned at a distant sniper position and did not participate in the melee combat, Unit 00 was the most intact.

Even Unit 0 doesn't need much overhaul and can continue fighting in the next battle... but Units 2 and 3... probably won't be able to start for at least a month.

At this moment, Asuka and Suzuhara Toji were still in the operating room due to their severe injuries, while Hikaru Toki was waiting outside the operating room...

Feeling ashamed to face Hikaru Toki, Rei Ayanami ran alone into the corridor and gazed helplessly at the distant moon.

At this point, Rei Ayanami turned her head away with a hint of self-reproach, feeling as if she had no right to look at Shinji Ikari's face... Ugh?

As a result, the moment she turned her head, Shinji Ikari gently reached out and pinched Rei Ayanami's fair and silky skin.

"Idiot, why are you here again... Didn't I already teach you about the guilt and pain you feel for your comrades? You can't stay stuck in the past, otherwise all my words will have been for nothing. You haven't forgotten, have you?"

"Woo..."

Not quite used to such intimate skin-to-skin contact, Rei Ayanami felt a little flustered... but she could sense the care and comfort Shinji Ikari was trying to convey to her.

"I haven't forgotten, how could I...forgot?"

Rei Ayanami certainly remembered... It was when the experiment to start Unit-00 failed... Shinji Ikari burned his hand while trying to free himself from the insertion plug.

At that time, Rei Ayanami felt extremely guilty because she not only couldn't help Shinji Ikari but also caused him trouble. At that time, Shinji Ikari taught her that saving the wounds of loved ones is the most precious proof.

"And you and Asuka did a great job... You are my pride."

Shinji Ikari offered his utmost respect to the fair-skinned girl before him without reservation.

…She is no longer the porcelain doll who couldn't even find the meaning of life. She has proven her transformation through her own efforts! She is now a human being capable of living a truly wonderful life.

"No, I didn't do anything..."

Seemingly feeling that Shinji Ikari's praise was excessive, Rei Ayanami quickly shook her head, only to be denied by Shinji.

"You worked with Asuka, Toji, and Mari to defeat the Eleventh Angel... This is an indisputable and uncontroversial fact."

That was a powerful enemy that could only be eliminated by the rampage and awakening of Unit-01, and it was also the fuse that triggered the Third Impact after Unit-01's awakening...!
Shinji Ikari glimpsed a world without Ultraman and monsters in the dream created by the Tenth Angel and the fragments of past reincarnations!
In that world, the moment that determines the course of fate is the battle against the Eleventh Apostle, the Angel of Power.

After the defeats of Unit-02 and Unit-00, Shinji Ikari, who awakened Unit-01 in an attempt to rescue Rei Ayanami, not only failed to save her but also personally drew back the curtain on the Third Impact.

And now——!
Shinji Ikari can proudly say that... even without Ultraman and monsters, he can protect himself with only humans!

Shinji Ikari didn't transform...! Unit-01 didn't go berserk...! Rei Ayanami and the others defeated the Angel with their own hands...! They defeated the seemingly invincible Eleventh Angel!

This made Shinji Ikari almost ecstatic! So... Shinji Ikari had to tell her, tell this girl, that the bravery and tenacity she displayed had literally changed the future of this world!
"Lingbo...do you believe me?"

"……cunning."

Hearing the familiar, formulaic opening remarks, Rei Ayanami gave a wry smile... because both he and she knew that Rei Ayanami could not deny this issue.

"Since you believe in me, remember this... It wasn't me, Ultraman, who saved you—it was your struggle and courage that summoned Ultraman's arrival. This is the only thing you must never forget, no matter what happens, no matter when!" "…………I understand. Ikari-kun."

Sensing the enlightenment Shinji Ikari conveyed in the words, Rei Ayanami, bathed in the night breeze, gently straightened her hair, a serene and open-minded smile on her face... a solemn promise.

"If Asuka... hears you say these things, Ikari-kun, she'll definitely... be happy."

"Ah, I'll talk to her when she comes out... and as long as she's happy, I can talk to her as many times as she wants."

After all, the credit for this was undoubtedly given to Asuka... After Shinji Ikari tested all the attack patterns of the Eleventh Angel in his first battle and then went offline, Asuka took on the heavy responsibility of being the leader... and performed exceptionally well throughout the entire battle!

For a moment, the long corridor fell silent again in the dead of night... Only the faint clanging of metal coming from the operating room could be heard, indicating that Asuka and Suzuhara Toji's surgery was not yet over.

"Shinji-kun."

After a long silence, Rei Ayanami took several deep breaths before mustering the courage to speak.

"what's wrong?"

"Shinji-kun, what will happen next...?"

"……after?"

Rei Ayanami nodded solemnly, a certain longing shining in her crimson eyes.

"After all the apostles have been destroyed, after everything... has come to an end."

"Oh...this?"

Shinji Ikari raised an eyebrow. After all… they had already eliminated the eleventh Angel… According to the Dead Sea Scrolls, only two remained.

And one of them can definitely be identified as Kaworu Nagisa, that guy who's got a serious illness to him...

"Nothing will happen. It'll be the same as now..."

"Eh??"

This answer far exceeded Rei Ayanami's expectations.

She originally thought that, given Shinji Ikari's usual personality, he would make a promise about the future here, such as going to see the sea after everything is over, going to see the flowers after everything is over, getting married after everything is over, and so on.

But to everyone's surprise, Shinji Ikari replied that... nothing had changed.

"What's the meaning…?"

Shinji Ikari shrugged as he looked at the bewildered Rei Ayanami.

"It means exactly what it says—like now, I'm fighting to protect you, to protect humanity, because I want to… I'm doing what I want to do, and that won't change in the future. I will always be doing what I want to do…"

"So, Ikari-kun... what do you want to do?"

"Me..."

Seeing Rei Ayanami tense up, anxiously awaiting an answer... Shinji Ikari smiled.

If it were Asuka, Shinji Ikari might have used a guessing game to brush it off.

However, Rei Ayanami could sense that when this girl spoke, she had made up her mind and was fully prepared.

Therefore, I cannot simply gloss over this... I must express my true feelings.

"I don't know either."

Seeing Shinji Ikari's answer, Rei Ayanami's face flashed with disappointment for a moment.

"...But, if I could stay with you all forever, it would be...very happy. So...I want to stay with you all forever."

(End of this chapter)