Shinji Ikari, returned from Warhammer

Misato Katsuragi felt a bad feeling creeping into her mind and glanced sideways at Shinji Ikari beside her. The refreshing young man smiled and waved to her, indicating that she should ignore him.

"And Lieutenant Shinji Ikari, your promotion ceremony is this afternoon. There's also a psychological support session. You shouldn't cause any trouble this time, our hero leader."

Chapter 43: A New Storm Has Arrived

This time, they struck at Shinji Ikari's weakness. The knights and nobles truly valued honor above all else.

That was the counseling room. The walls had been freshly painted, and you couldn't tell at all that a tragedy had once taken place there.

This time, Shinji Ikari sat on the sofa, and the young lieutenant seemed completely unconcerned. He lowered his gaze and saw a young man in casual clothes and gold-rimmed glasses sitting opposite him.

The young man's smile was infectious, instantly making people feel good about him.

"Hello, I am Special Correspondent Yamadera Koichi. It's a pleasure to meet you!"

A doctor named Yamadera Koichi smiled and handed over his business card. "Actually, I'm not really a psychologist, I'm just here to provide you with counseling. Just think of it as doing me a favor and getting the examination done. It's just answering a few questions, it won't take up more than a few minutes of your time. For example, what are those 'Emperor' and 'Golden Spirit' that you keep mentioning?"

"Are you a psychiatrist too? My senior doctor said I have bipolar disorder," Shinji Ikari said with a hint of worry.

"Absolutely not!" the doctor with gold-rimmed glasses said firmly. "The last doctor, Fujiwara, was a quack. You're our headquarters' ace, and he diagnosed you with bipolar disorder? He must be a spy from the Japanese Ministry of Home Affairs! Trying to smear our war hero!"

Clearly, the psychologist took a conciliatory approach this time. And it worked well, as Shinji Ikari smiled and closed the distance between them.

“But I really do.” Shinji Ikari gazed into the doctor’s eyes with utmost sincerity.

"What...does this mean?" The doctor sensed the tense atmosphere and quickly sat up straight. Then he heard a sharp thud as something hard hit the ground. He looked down and saw a silver wrench that had fallen out of Shinji Ikari's trouser leg.

Shinji Ikari gently picked it up in front of the doctor and placed it on the table with a smile.

"I'm the pilot of Unit-01, and I also know a bit about maintenance, so it's reasonable for me to carry a wrench, right?"

The psychologist's eyes were slightly vacant as he thought to himself, "What does the driver have to do with the wrench?" But he still answered with a bright smile, "It makes sense, very reasonable!"

"By the way, Doctor, what was I saying before that?" Shinji Ikari stood up, closed the door again, and asked earnestly, holding a wrench.

Half an hour later, in the office area.

Ritsuko Akagi watched as Misato Katsuragi walked out of the Central Dogmatic District with a cryptic expression. Almost simultaneously, the paralyzed and unconscious psychiatrist on a stretcher was also rushed to the infirmary for emergency treatment.

"It seems Shinji Ikari's mentality has really improved a lot. This new doctor isn't injured at all; it seems he just fainted from fright." Ritsuko Akagi, with her hands in her pockets, still had the leisure to make a teasing remark.

"You're still saying that? I'm getting annoyed to death." Misato Katsuragi sighed. "I always feel like I'm caught in the middle, not pleasing anyone."

Although neither Misato Katsuragi nor Gendo Ikari said it, Ritsuko Akagi could probably guess that they still wanted to regain control of Shinji Ikari.

"Actually, we just want to understand Shinji Ikari's views and perceptions of the world. He is an extremely rare case." Ritsuko Akagi pushed up her glasses.

"Shinji Ikari is clearly not the kind of child who is insecure and cowardly and closes himself off. The porcupine dilemma theory doesn't apply to him at all. So why is he able to develop such a powerful AT Field? That's very interesting."

The AT field is a wall that separates self-awareness from the self-awareness of others; it is the material basis for distinguishing oneself from others and is also known as the wall of the heart. However, the AT field is also a cause of loneliness and suffering.

But Shinji Ikari felt neither pain, nor loneliness, nor isolation, nor resistance to the world. So, was the AT Field that Unit-01 created in his hands so powerful simply because he was Yui Ikari's child?

No one can be happy when being criticized and scolded, but I see in people's angry faces a more terrifying animal nature than that of lions, crocodiles, or dragons. They usually hide these natures, but once they find an opportunity, they will be like those gentle cows on the grasslands, suddenly whipping their tails to kill the horseflies on their bellies.

But Shinji Ikari is a proud dragon; if you yell at him, he'll only look at you coldly. He'll either breathe out scorching flames and obliterate you, or he'll ignore you like you're shooing away a fly.

“Perhaps he wants to devour this world,” Ritsuko Akagi said.

Of course, Gendo Ikari's goal wasn't just to figure out the AT's stance; his ultimate aim was to regain control of Shinji Ikari. Misato Katsuragi, who had become his friend, family, and a part of his life, was the perfect entry point.

Misato Katsuragi did not speak again.

Just as she didn't want to know about those sordid affairs, yet they still reached her ears; she didn't want to know about the open and covert struggles between the Japanese government, the United Nations, and NERV, but her duties as the Chief of Operations still forced her to pay attention to it. For example, right now she just wanted to do her job well and be Shinji Ikari's guardian.

Happiness is something that sinks to the bottom of a river of sorrow, faintly glowing like gold dust.

“Many times we have no choice in the matter,” Ritsuko Akagi patted her shoulder comfortingly. “Sometimes I envy Shinji Ikari’s carefree attitude. Perhaps he just doesn’t want to get involved in these things, which is why he acts so recklessly.”

Misato Katsuragi remained silent, but she could vaguely sense something about Shinji Ikari's inner thoughts. A fire burned within him, perhaps yearning to ignite something.

…………

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"Stop looking so gloomy. I'm the one who needs counseling, so why do you look like you need it more than I do?"

Second Tokyo City, Kanagawa Yamanaka Highway.

The mountain wind sent shivers down his spine, but Shinji Ikari rested one hand on the car window, laughing unrestrainedly. Misato Katsuragi, in the driver's seat, had the complete opposite expression, pouting and wearing a sour face, like a working person who knew the ropes the night before but was still forced to go to work.

"Sometimes I really want to quit my job and take a spontaneous trip," Misato Katsuragi sighed.

“You can go now. I’ll go with you in this Mazda. Let’s head to Kyoto first. I’ve wanted to eat yaki (Japanese baked sweets) there for a long time.”

"What about the apostles in Tokyo? I haven't even finished paying off my 33rd installment of car loan yet!"

"I think compared to your 33-month mortgage payment, your ill-fated Mazda might break down first," Shinji Ikari casually remarked.

As if to confirm Shinji Ikari's words, the moment his voice fell, a massive machine, accompanied by a whistling wind, descended from the sky and crashed onto the road ahead.

Misato Katsuragi jerked the steering wheel and slammed on the brakes, the acrid smell of tires rubbing against the pavement filling the air. Katsuragi's reaction time was indeed quick; otherwise, even a fraction slower and the so-called operations officer and hero pilot would have been on their way to the afterlife.

But Shinji Ikari didn't have time to praise her skill. He stepped out of the car with Misato Katsuragi, raising his eyebrows. Under the bright headlights of the Mazda, they looked up at the majestic silhouette emerging from the distant sea.

Above the crimson sea, a gigantic alien creature leaps across the surface, soaring like a roc across the horizon.

Hundreds of black figures shimmered with a crystalline light. They had fish-like bodies and wings. The colossal black and white fish-like monster leaped out of the water, propelling itself through the air like a sea serpent. Silver waves churned on the surface, splashing countless points of light as they fell back into the water, filling the air with a deafening roar.

A new storm has arrived!

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PS1: In the freezing winter, a group of porcupines huddled together in a not-so-warm tree hollow. It was so cold that they relied on each other's body heat for warmth. But getting too close caused each other's quills to prick them, so they moved away. But the warmth left with them. Thus, the porcupines frequently adjusted their distance. When the perfect distance appeared, they stopped getting closer and further away. This distance didn't cause injury, yet they could still feel each other's warmth. In this way, they survived a warm winter. This is Schopenhauer's "The Porcupine's Dilemma," often cited in AT fields.

PS2: The current world follows the four-part new theatrical series setting, but most of the apostles from the old TV series will also appear, and the plot may also follow the old TV series storyline.

Chapter 44: Asuka, the Attack

Beyond the sea of ​​the God-like River lies the new Yokosuka.

The UN fleet stationed there also engaged in a battle with the Seventh Apostle as soon as it appeared.

They intended to show those useless members of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces what a modern fleet was like, but instead, they suffered a terrible calamity at the very first moment.

"The Storm has sunk, and New Blue Ridge is in ruins!"

"What's going on? The radar shows that at least four torpedoes have hit the target, so why is it still moving so fast?!"

"The target is rapidly approaching the transport ship behind! Underwater speed exceeds 70 knots!" the first mate shouted.

From the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruisers to the USS Lassen destroyer, and even the Seventh Fleet flagship USS Blue Ridge, all warships were trying to track the target.

But that enormous creature on the seabed, its graceful form was like a moving torpedo, swift and ferocious.

"We have no choice but to abandon the torpedoes for now, as this distance could easily affect our own fleet," said Navy Commander Robert. At that moment, he felt an unsettling tremor in the water around him, which many of his crew members also felt. The tremor was coming from the cruiser they were standing on, and the entire seabed was shaking, as if some giant creature was stirring up the ocean floor.

"Speed ​​exceeding 70 knots! What is so fast?! Our torpedoes can't track it at all!"

"It can't be Nezha wielding the Hun Tian Ling, can it?"

This colossal underwater creature, moving at breakneck speed, sank the Storm and then attacked the transport ships behind it. Just as it appeared mysteriously and vanished without a trace, it never again made a ripple on the water's surface.

At this moment, on the mountain road of the Kanagawa River, thirty kilometers away, after receiving a call from headquarters, Misato Katsuragi looked at Shinji Ikari.

"I'm sorry, it seems I can't go to the Yokohama fireworks festival with you. Headquarters wants me to go back. Are you coming back with me now, or do you want to go to the meeting point alone first?"

"You go about your business, don't worry about me." Shinji Ikari leaned against the highway railing, glancing at the distant seaside town. "I'm not too interested in the fireworks festival. See you tomorrow, I'll just wander around by myself."

"Haha, I knew you wouldn't need me to worry, Mom!" Misato Katsuragi laughed heartily, hugging Shinji Ikari's face and kissing him. Then, twenty minutes later, a helicopter dispatched from headquarters hovered overhead like a giant black bird.

The situation certainly seemed urgent, Shinji Ikari thought to himself, as he watched Misato Katsuragi standing in the helicopter waving goodbye to him.

No one would leave a fourteen-year-old boy out in the open, but Misato Katsuragi could. However, Shinji Ikari didn't really need her to worry about him. He sat back in the driver's seat of the Mazda after a long absence, shifted the gear lever back to drive, and stepped on the gas.

Facing the cold mountain wind once again, Shinji Ikari couldn't help but look up at the shimmering sea.

The Seventh Angel, appearing and disappearing suddenly, was enigmatic, yet Shinji Ikari's battlefield intuition gave him a feeling. Perhaps, it was searching for something.

…………

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Central Dogmatic District, Commander's Office.

If Shinji Ikari were to come here in person, he would probably feel unwell again.

The large, single-level apartment, covering more than 500 square meters, has only one desk at the very front. The giant icon at the foot of the desk is the Tree of Reverse Life, which is closely related to the Apostles, and the tree above the head is the tree of knowledge of good and evil in mythology.

Every groove and crevice glowed with a soft pink light, like a massive ritual altar. It made the person standing in the center feel as if they might be sacrificed at any moment, summoning heroic spirits to fight in the Holy Grail War. Of course, it was also possible that a bound, blind wizard would be summoned.

"The Marduk Project at the Bethany base has been successfully thwarted. The out-of-control Subject 3 has been eliminated. Everything is as you wished."

"And this is also something. We only stole a portion of Marduk's technology, because the Marduk project itself never succeeded. Please take a look."

Standing before the woman was not Gendo Ikari, but a tall, thin, upright elderly man in military uniform, Yukimasa Fuyutsuki. He smiled as he took the document; its thickness and rigidity suggested that what had been stolen was likely more than just a portion of Marduk's technology.

"Thank you for your hard work. Where is the CEO? Didn't he come with you?" said Fuyutsuki Yukizo.

“Senior Jiazhi is transporting something far more important, so of course he can’t just fly back like I did.” At this moment, the woman put her glasses on her head like sunglasses. “I’m afraid that restless Seventh Apostle is looking for him.”

As she spoke, she looked in the direction of Shin Yokosu.

"However, Unit 2 is also en route. With Him there, there shouldn't be any problems. That proud princess will probably need to defeat an Apostle before she can have a normal conversation with the two Chosen Ones at headquarters."

…………

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Yokohama, Naka-ku, Yamashita-cho, Chinatown.

Shinji Ikari wandered aimlessly, a cup of milk tea in his hand. Shinji's mission was simple, at least according to Misato Katsuragi, this trip was just for fun.

The original plan was for Misato Katsuragi to drive to Yokohama for a day and a night, and then visit the UN fleet stationed in Shin-Yokohama with Rei Ayanami and the others the next day. She'd heard that the Second Child, who had been training in Germany, was also there, so she wanted to show her the friendly atmosphere of headquarters beforehand.

Back in this world, Shinji Ikari still possessed some semblance of normal human thinking. He was fairly certain that Misato Katsuragi genuinely wanted him to express goodwill towards the so-called aggressive second girl, rather than using this as an excuse to beat her up and make her understand who was in charge.

What surprised Shinji Ikari was that it seemed there was no intention for him to pilot Unit-01 to confront the Seventh Angel. Was it going to rely on the so-called UN fleet, or...?

But suddenly a loud clang of a heavy object hitting the machinery brought him back to reality.