Shinji Ikari, returned from Warhammer

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"It seems that the built-in anti-L system's blurring device alone is not enough to affect this area."

Inside Tokyo-3, Maya Ibuki, still wearing her protective suit, quietly took notes. "And there's Black Moon, whose bottom has changed when it touches the ground, Asuka and Unit-02 that have fallen. These are truly troubled times."

"It's been two days, such a long time. Is Colonel Shikinami alright?" Standing next to her, Sakura Suzuhara was taking notes and couldn't help but ask, "It seems that the EVA's life support system can only last up to 24 hours."

Maya Ibuki's expression was indifferent. "These EVA pilots are no longer simply human, and Asuka's abnormality surpasses that of all the pilots. Perhaps between humans and Angels, she is closer to the latter. Even if everyone else dies, she might still be alive."

"How lonely I am," Sakura Suzuhara sighed softly. "I don't want to die alone, I don't want to live alone."

"Humans are social animals, but the apostles are not. They are perfect beings who can live alone in this world."

"Organize the research and write a report to send to Captain Katsuragi this afternoon," Maya Ibuki coldly ordered.

"Yes." Suzuhara Sakura watched the handsome Chief Inspector Ibuki leave, and some questions she wanted to ask, such as about her relationship with Vice Captain Akagi, remained stuck in her throat, unable to be asked.

"Akagi said she could no longer love anyone and had lost the right to be loved."

Ship of Hope, Wille Seed Vault, Shinji Ikari and Misato Katsuragi slowly descended the elevator. They had just strolled around after dinner and ended up here.

“After what happened at Gendo Ikari, Ritsuko Akagi was depressed for a long time, feeling that she was not good enough as a woman, a mother, or a friend. She also rejected Maya Ibuki’s confession. Aren’t you surprised…” Misato Katsuragi looked at Shinji Ikari, who was standing next to her and was now the same height as her.

“What’s so surprising? Perhaps only Ritsuko Akagi in the entire Hakone doesn’t know who Maya Ibuki likes,” Shinji Ikari said.

Misato Katsuragi nodded, not wearing her usual captain's hat, but a plain red denim jacket and black pencil skirt. Asuka, Mari, and Misato, though they hadn't discussed it, subconsciously made the same choice—to wear the outfit Shinji Ikari was familiar with.

“Ritsuko Akagi believes she is not worthy of being loved. What would the new generation call that… ‘Sealing off one’s heart and locking away love’?” Misato Katsuragi thought for a moment and smiled.

At this moment, Ryoumi Kotone from the logistics department ran up to Katsuragi Misato with a report in hand. She glanced at Shinji Ikari beside her, perhaps somewhat surprised that he was also there, and that he seemed to be getting along well with the captain.

"Captain, the next step requires your signature. It authorizes the independent operation of the credit organization and allows the lifting of all restrictions on EVA." After Misato Katsuragi received the tablet, a handprint appeared on the screen. She gently placed her hand on it, followed by a notification that the request had been approved.

After a slight bow, the pink-haired Ryoubo quickly left. Katsuragi Misato looked at the huge seed bank above her head and said softly.

"This area bears the primary mission of this spacecraft: to protect all species."

Misato Katsuragi reached into her pocket, a habitual gesture as she wanted to smoke, but all she had now was a pen. "An ark that can operate almost indefinitely, unmanned, and completely autonomous—that's the essence of the AAA-class Miracle."

"With this characteristic, this spaceship must also be an Angel or an EVA, right?" Shinji Ikari asked.

“Remember the Third Angel? That skeletal ichthyosaur that was captured long ago at the Bethany base in the permafrost and was being tried to be converted into an EVA. The Hope Ship is a more perfect finished product. The entire ship was modified from the eleventh Angel's mecha; it's actually a giant ship-shaped EVA,” Misato Katsuragi said. “There are a total of four aircraft carriers like this, converted from Angel wreckage. We only had time to take this half-finished Hope Ship with us; otherwise, life wouldn't have been so difficult.”

With humans capable of mass-producing Angels (EVA) and even creating the S2 Perpetual Engine with unlimited energy, it seems that those Angels are nothing special.

But there is another crucial and mysterious thing, which is the personhood they possess.

Gendo Ikari once said that the Human Instrumentality Project was humanity's choice to seize the place of the Angels before God. Therefore, even though humanity is now able to create creations that are almost like the Angels and mass-produce EVAs, there are certain qualifications that only true Angels possess.

Looking at the seed bank that contained almost all the genes of plants and animals from around the world, Shinji Ikari asked, "Didn't you think you could win from the beginning?"

"For one person, the survival of humanity might not have been that important. In his view, humanity was powerless to stop the Human Instrumentality Project, but in the end, he gave his life to stop the Third Impact."

"You're talking about Kaji, right? What exactly is the Third Impact?" Shinji Ikari turned to look at Misato Katsuragi.

Many surviving humans in this world believe that they are the culprits who caused the Third Impact, but in reality, they only caused a near-Third Impact. They were killed by Kaworu Nagisa piloting Unit-06 when the Gate of Gaff opened, and when they woke up again, they were in the future.

What about the real third impact?

"The Unit-06 that stopped you was ultimately left deep within Hakone, but no one expected that this unit would automatically activate and infiltrate Central Dogma when NERV was empty, pulling out the Spear of Longinus from Lilith's body and reviving her. However, it immediately severed Lilith's head and fused it with her body, awakening the Angel. As a result, the Mark series Unit-06 entered Hyper-Divine Transformation, reopening the Gate of Gaff."

Misato Katsuragi's words were blank, because at that moment, all she could think of was the image of the world being destroyed.

The Black Moon rose from the ground and into the sky, the concentration of the L-Barrier increased, and people and animals all over the world began to transform into apostle-like life forms.

The new life created by the forbidden fusion of Adam and Lilith was to transform humans, who originally possessed the fruit of wisdom, into apostles who also possessed the fruit of life, and to turn all life on earth into apostles, thereby promoting the passive evolution of life that refused to evolve.

Some people suddenly had their hands turn into apostles, and some had their feet turn into apostles. The fully transformed apostles wandered aimlessly on the red earth.

The story recorded in the Dead Sea Scrolls unfolded before their eyes. After a sigh, Misato Katsuragi revealed the final outcome: "This scene also made everyone at NERV see Gendo Ikari's true colors. We could only take advantage of the chaos to stage a mutiny and seize the WUNDER (the ship of hope) which was still under construction. Although we later reinserted the two guns into Lilith's body and brought her back to the ground, it was too late. The Third Impact was completed, and all of humanity was transformed into LCL within the L-Barrier created by the Third Impact."

Shinji Ikari pursed his lips. So everyone knew he hadn't orchestrated the Third Impact, but they just wouldn't tell those who didn't know the truth. Perhaps it was because those still alive needed an outlet for their emotions, or perhaps it was because he was Gendo Ikari's son.

"Whether it was SEELE or the Commander who initiated the third strike is no longer up for discussion. One last question: who is piloting EVA Unit-06?" Shinji Ikari asked finally.

“Akagi guessed it might be a puppet system she was unaware of, but it’s more likely to be Kaworu Nagisa.” Misato Katsuragi’s expression was deep. Although Kaworu Nagisa, the Angel with a human appearance, seemed harmless, the fact that he might be the culprit who triggered the Third Impact made it impossible for her to truly trust him.

"Is there anything else?" Shinji Ikari continued to ask.

"If I had to say, there's one very small possibility: the driver is Asuka. I don't know which one you'd rather believe."

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"The gyro compass is operating normally, and the ship's wheels and gravity control are all functioning properly."

"EVA Unit 8 has arrived at the designated location and is initiating the cabin entry procedure."

"The Fifth Child, Kaworu Nagisa, did not notice anything unusual. Oh, he looked at the camera. Perhaps he realized we were monitoring him."

"The main gun is being charged; the energy flow is normal."

At this moment, everyone on the Ship of Hope is carrying out their work in an orderly manner, solving the final mystery, uncovering the truth of the world, dealing with enemies who may not be completely dead yet, and rescuing fallen comrades. These are all Wille's duties.

However, Sakura Suzuhara, who was in charge of contacting Shinji Ikari, exclaimed in alarm, "Oh no! Mr. Shinji Ikari has already disembarked in Unit-01!"

Returning to this place for the second time, Shinji Ikari remained calm as he looked at the EVA corpse embedded in the wall. He piloted Unit-01 slowly downwards, needing no lighting equipment; the unit's vision alone allowed him to see everything in the vicinity.

Wille only needs to handle logistics. If an enemy that even he can't handle appears below, Rei Ayanami and Mari Makinami coming down won't help.

Shinji Ikari also wanted to know what it was that rendered Unit-02 and Unit-08 powerless to resist, and even Unit-02 was trapped here.

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PS: Here I'll be using the analysis from Bilibili up-master Iwakawa Salted Fish over fourteen years.

1. Due to the awakening of Unit-01 and its pilot (the materialization of the soul of the Fruit of Wisdom), and the rescue of Rei Ayanami from the Tenth Angel (the materialization of the Fruit of Life), the conditions for becoming a god were met, triggering the "near" Third Impact, which was fortunately stopped in time by Kaworu Nagisa.

2. The awakening of Unit-12 is completely different from SEELE's original plan to use the Twelfth Angel (Unit-6) to kill Lilith and achieve Human Instrumentality.

3. Due to the unforeseen events surrounding Unit-4, SEELE decided to significantly advance the launch of the Third Impact. The four WUDDER-class battleships originally prepared for the Third Impact were forced to prioritize the construction of the first ship, the Confession.

4. The Eleventh Apostle appears and is controlled.

5. After completing the annihilation and control of all [Apostles], SEELE regained control of NERV from the Commander, and NERV members were transferred and detained.

6. As a precaution, SEELE decided that during the Third Impact, the awakened Unit-01 and Shinji would be launched into low Earth orbit while remaining frozen in their original states. Shinji did not participate in the Third Impact at all. (However, he was blamed for this in the dialogue.)

Two Two Five: Asuka × Asuka × Shinji Ikari

"Shinji Ikari, Shinji Ikari! Respond if you receive this message, respond if you receive this message!" Misato Katsuragi's voice rang out in the cockpit.

Misato Katsuragi's voice interrupted Shinji Ikari's thoughts, and he couldn't help but purse his lips. In Shinji's view, their role was merely logistical, which was simply their job. However, those in the command center always had their own ideas and insisted on having a sense of involvement.

Shinji Ikari wondered what they could do: call upon love when facing a powerful enemy, give light to themselves when in darkness and despair, or be the most crucial Earth Tiger when they combine to summon and transform into Emperor Warrior?

"Stop arguing, I can hear you." Shinji Ikari's cool voice rang out in the battleship's bridge, and Misato Katsuragi breathed a sigh of relief.

Her senses were completely opposite to Shinji Ikari's. The familiar voices and the images projected in the center of the battleship bridge gave her a feeling of being transported back to fourteen years ago.

“Based on Wille’s research and Fuyutsuki Kosuke’s testimony, it should be the reactivation of Unit-03.” Katsuragi Misato didn’t waste any words and immediately got to the point. “It is very likely that our attempt to salvage Unit-03 awakened it, or it could be the Ninth Angel sealed within Asuka. There must be some medium that can trigger it.”

"Is Gendo Ikari still alive?" Shinji Ikari asked casually.

The battle bridge was silent for a few seconds, because no one had expected Shinji Ikari to suddenly utter that name. Even though he had been killed, even though he was an enemy, those who had lived under his shadow for so long still held a deep-seated aversion to the name Gendo Ikari, as if they feared his return from hell.

What's chilling is that his fears seem to be becoming a reality.

“That’s the most likely possibility.” A familiar female voice rang out in the cockpit, and Shinji Ikari raised an eyebrow. He recognized the speaker as Ritsuko Akagi, who should be the one most afraid of Gendo Ikari. “According to Fuyutsuki-sensei, for some qualified individuals, death is not the end. Perhaps Unit-013 is still hidden, and only Gendo Ikari knows the ultimate secret.”

"That's good, I can kill again." Shinji Ikari said calmly.

The object of Wille's fear was not taken seriously by Shinji Ikari; in fact, it was he who was the nightmare that many people feared.

As soon as those words were spoken, the cockpit and the battle bridge fell silent. At this moment, Unit-01 had already descended into the abyss, and Shinji Ikari looked at the countless giant sculptures on the walls of the tunnel, all of them flawed products with incomplete bodies or twisted limbs.

They may lack a head or a heart, or have dozens of bloody, fleshy hands growing from their chests, or have two faces. The only thing they have in common is their resentful eyes, the hatred of the dead for the living, the fury of those who have fallen from godhood to aliens.

"It's truly grotesque, like it's still alive," Misato Katsuragi remarked softly.

“…No!” Ritsuko Akagi suddenly said, “Third Child, those giants embedded in the tunnel seem to have moved…Hey, Maya, what’s wrong?”

An urgent call came from the preparation force; alarms blared throughout the battle bridge, signaling an impending enemy attack. Everyone was bewildered. After capturing Fuyutsuki Yukinobu and taking control of all the survivors, what other enemies could there be?

"I need to answer the phone and find out what happened."

Misato Katsuragi suddenly fell silent. Through the screen, she saw with her own eyes the head embedded in the corridor wall move. The entire distorted, pale face emerged from the wall, the flesh hanging on the cheeks was still writhing, and the teeth, exactly like those of a human, suddenly opened and closed, making a series of cracking sounds.

"These defective EVAs actually came back to life?!" Midori Kitakami's voice instantly rose several decibels. "As expected, Gendo Ikari didn't die! He didn't die! We!"

At this moment, on the border of Third New Tokyo City, just as Wille had planned, after taking over the last survivors, Wille had no enemies to fight. All the reserve forces were temporarily stationed on the border of Third New Tokyo City, observing the movements of the wanderers.

But suddenly, the ground in front of them rose up. A semi-transparent giant rapidly expanded, revealing the outline of a headed giant. It looked up at the sky and made a sound that was like an old man's laughter and a child's cry, then bent its long neck, lowered its head, and stared at Ibuki Maya at the edge of the anti-L barrier.

It was one of the very few wanderers with a head. Ibuki Maya took a step back in fear. The giant in front of her was taller than the building next to her. Its armor was raised like jagged scales. Along its spine were serrated black bone spikes that pierced through the armor. It unconsciously opened its mouth wide and took a step towards the boundary line.

Behind it, thousands of wanderers materialized, their gazes fixed on Third New Tokyo.

"Back off! Everyone back off!" Ibuki Maya shouted in unison, holding a walkie-talkie.

As expected, as these large numbers of wanderers approached, the border of the Third New Tokyo City, which had regained its color, gradually turned the soil red again.

At the heart of this storm sweeping the world lies the depths of a dark tunnel that seems to lead to hell.

The EVAs embedded in the tunnel walls seemed to come alive. The negative universe opened its doors to them, and the infinite energy allowed them to break free of their restraints. The scene before them was like a demon stepping out of a mural, struggling to reach out to the humans who had fallen into hell.

However, what they faced were not humans, nor even angels, but evil spirits far more vicious than themselves.

Time seemed to stand still. The demons that stretched out their claws from the tunnel walls, and Unit-01 slowly descending from the center, all remained motionless at that moment. When things resumed their course, countless pieces of corpses fell like a blood-red rain onto the azure ultimate barrier below.

Just a moment ago, Misato Katsuragi even wondered if her connection had dropped, and what had happened in that instant.

"Is this the kind of rotten fish and shrimp? Heh, even if some trash other than the apostles are lured into this battle, it doesn't matter. But no matter how many defective products there are, it won't relieve the frustration."

These EVAs, seemingly brought to life, are far more advanced than the wanderers outside. They were originally qualified to become EVAs, but due to reasons such as technology or form, they were reduced to part of the walls of the tunnel leading to the abyss.

The tunnel was still vibrating; Unit-01 had only destroyed the nearby parts. Shinji Ikari remained expressionless. The now-awakened Unit-01 conjured beams of light as long as its body in each hand, and visible halo effects materialized beneath its feet before tearing through the sound barrier and swooping upwards.

The tunnel shaped by EVA was shattered into pieces. Even the walls, constructed from mythical materials that combine flexibility and strength like those in God Form, could not withstand the violent impact of Unit-01. The blinding stream of light washed over the tunnel, annihilating all the resurrected spirits.

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