Shinji Ikari, returned from Warhammer

However, the aftershocks that had been hitting her did not stop there, because Unit 3, having fully charged up again, had already swooped down in front of her, its palm surging with light, and its crimson body continued to penetrate the reinforced concrete—

Bang, boom, thud!

The sound of destruction echoed along the way, penetrating the walls of dozens of buildings before finally stopping at the intersection, creating a massive ditch hundreds of meters long.

Splat, splat.

In a dizzying moment, Asuka in the cockpit of Unit 2 was plunged into a hazy darkness.

At this moment, everyone was shocked by the horrifying scene before them. The seemingly clumsy Unit 3 suddenly unleashed a ferocious, beast-like attack mode, and the aggressive Unit 2 was instantly paralyzed. This sudden reversal made everyone gasp in shock.

"Rei! Change the plan! Rescue Unit 2 immediately! Use the sensor cannon to draw the target's attention, don't linger!" Only Misato Katsuragi calmly issued the order.

"Understood." A calm voice replied from the channel.

Unit-00, which had just been ejected to the ground, immediately used the sensor cannon mounted on its shoulder blade to bombard Unit-3, which was preparing to kill Unit-2, and then quickly retreated while drawing attention to it.

Seeing that the crisis had temporarily passed, Misato Katsuragi noticed that Unit-03's pierced chest had healed, and black, dangerous blood was splattered all over the surrounding ground, as sticky as asphalt.

“…This apostle’s recovery speed is abnormal!” Misato Katsuragi’s eyes narrowed.

At this moment, she finally understood why Unit-03, with its chest pierced, was able to unleash combat power beyond reason in that state.

Prior to this, they had simply regarded the data of Unit-03 as that of the new Angel and were not overly afraid. Although Unit-03, as the completed product of Project Marduk, had extremely superior performance, it was not terrifying compared to the various strange Angels they had encountered before.

But He is not Unit 3, but the Twelfth Apostle, Baldir, who is a fusion of Unit 3 and the remains of the Fetal Apostle! He possesses not only the infinite energy of the Apostle but also the super adaptability of the Fetal Apostle!

"Request the assistance of the Self-Defense Forces on standby to carry out an N2 bomb attack," Misato Katsuragi decided immediately.

"This can't be done, Minister!" Hinata Makoto suddenly stood up. "The Commander will not allow the Self-Defense Forces to intervene!"

Not only would this risk the loss of the "absolute command over Japan in times of emergency" that had been painstakingly seized from the military, but more importantly, it would cause the commander to lose face. This would prove that his previous decision to dismiss Shinji Ikari as a pilot was a mistake.

"Shut up, Hyuga! I am the one in charge of this operation!" Katsuragi Misato rebuked him fiercely.

"You, Minister, you'll regret this!" Seeing Misato Katsuragi's resolute attitude, Makoto Hyuga could only return to his seat in humiliation.

104: The Sword of Damocles

Shortly after the decision was made, the phone rang urgently in the monitoring room from headquarters, but Misato Katsuragi continued to issue orders as always.

"Deploy the defensive line at Nobeyama as planned, and notify the first eligible candidate to lure the target to the destination."

"The extension cable isn't long enough!" Shigeru Aoba shouted.

"An external power supply was already installed for Unit 0 on the way here. Ten minutes is enough time. The installation plan will proceed."

"Understood!" Aoba Shigeru replied quickly.

A line of planes swept across the direction of Second New Tokyo. Residents who had been notified to evacuate looked up at the unsettling scene. Residents who had lived near Gora had a strong sense of déjà vu, because something similar had happened once before when they confronted the Music Apostles.

But the result is self-evident.

At this moment, the twelve apostles, who had completed their possession of Unit 3, finally revealed a weakness to the operations team. This weakness wasn't exactly a weakness, but rather a relatively low level of intelligence compared to the other apostles. They were more like wild beasts acting on instinct.

He should have annihilated the paralyzed Unit 2 in one fell swoop, but he was easily distracted by Unit 00's firepower and his hatred was diverted. He then ran wildly toward the battlefield that Misato Katsuragi had set up in advance.

Its movement speed also increased rapidly at a visible speed, from being stiff at the beginning to finally charging wildly forward like a beast, on all fours, towards Unit-00.

Soon it broke free from the constraints of sound, and the deafening sonic boom echoed throughout the outskirts of Third New Tokyo!

Although they were only in the monitoring room, the staff in the operations department were so shocked by the increasing speed of the Angels that they forgot to breathe.

The apostle that possessed the body of Unit 3 was merely like a mindless beast, but its rapid control of the body and its terrifying evolutionary ability gave everyone the feeling of facing a demon crawling out of hell.

At this moment, Unit-00, which was attracting hatred in front, also broke the sound barrier. However, there are still differences between supersonic speeds. The difference between different mobile suits is like heaven and earth.

Behind Unit-00, the black Angel mobile suit followed like a raging sea dragon, its expression like that of a wild beast ready to pounce at any moment. Even with the enemy's claws already touching her neck, Rei Ayanami remained expressionless.

With death looming overhead and a snarling demon trailing behind, Rei Ayanami's thoughts remained unmoved by the steady, focused steps she took. Despite the imminent threat of death and destruction, her composure remained steadfast.

She believed in Misato Katsuragi's plan, and Misato believed in her. Even as the figures of Unit-00 and the Angel nearly overlapped, she still didn't give the order to attack. Until Unit-00 set foot on the Nobeyama defense line—

"HIMARS multiple rocket launcher systems connected to Japan's aerospace defense ground environment network, fire all of them!" Misato Katsuragi roared.

All the barriers in the Third Tokyo Four Directions, including those in the mountains and forests, opened, and streaks of ground-attack missiles and long-range anti-ship missiles, trailing thick white smoke, flew towards the menacing black aircraft behind Unit Zero.

The "family bucket meal" that was once only enjoyed by the Thunder Apostle was now being bombarded on the surface of the black machine.

The speed at which the Angry Birds reacted and changed was beyond the expectations of everyone in the combat department. Or rather, it was that almost biological intuition that made him deploy the AT Field immediately. The seven-colored rhomboid force field instantly defended against the missile swarms flying from all directions, plunging Him into a cloud of smoke.

While the missile arsenal was incredibly powerful, killing an Angel was a pipe dream. However, Misato Katsuragi only needed them to buy some time for Unit-00. At this point, their mission was already accomplished.

"General Tsurumaki, it's your turn to step in." Misato Katsuragi said, speaking on another channel.

"No problem, the Self-Defense Forces will not let the Yamato people down!" Tsurumaki Kazuya said firmly from the other end of the communication.

Misato Katsuragi didn't hesitate at all, not because she knew the truth that smoke was harmless, but because MAGI's radar monitoring showed that the life signs of the seraphim were still a vibrant orange.

But in that brief gap, it was enough for Unit-00 and the Seraphim to create distance. At this moment, the real trump card was revealed.

Superfortress bombers hovering in the sky successively dropped oval-shaped bombs on the target.

Despite its name, N2 bomb, which sounds like a bomb or landmine, might be underestimated. However, it is actually one of the very few weapons in human civilization capable of harming Apostles. N2 bombs typically have a yield equivalent to tens of thousands of tons of TNT and can sustain energy fission or fusion reactions to release energy and produce an explosive effect, with a power comparable to nuclear weapons.

The moment the N2 bomb landed, the shockwave from its collision with the Absolute Territory rapidly engulfed the surrounding space. Centered on the Black Apostle, the sandy earth cracked open like clay, trees and forests were instantly incinerated, and the sky and clouds were easily torn apart.

But this was not the only attack; a second and a third N2 bomb were subsequently dropped from the sky.

As this was the first time NERV had requested a proactive attack, the Wartime Self-Defense Forces mobilized all their stockpiles in an effort to completely annihilate the Angels on the spot.

On the other side of the crimson mushroom cloud, military representative Kazuya Tsurumaki watched from the rooftop of the Third New Capital Central Building, far away, as the massive black machine was gradually swallowed up and disappeared by dazzling white light.

Visibility was already poor at such a distance, and with the distance so great, it was impossible to observe the battle with the naked eye. He was also not well-prepared to immediately send out reconnaissance aircraft, and could only watch with a heavy heart as the apostles and fighter jets wreaked havoc on the mountainside.

In short, the battle seems to have come to an end. Both EVAs were saved, and although the process of achieving victory was difficult, victory was still achieved.

“That’s great…” Tsurumaki Kazuya smiled.

Although standing on a high, sheltered spot, the howling wind made it difficult for him to stand, but he finally felt a great weight lifted from his shoulders. Soon, the reconnaissance plane would return with good news. Unlike the previous Angel annihilation battles where he had played a supporting role, the key difference was that this time the Self-Defense Forces were the main attackers, and the head of NERV's operations department had promised not to compete with them for credit.

If it weren't for the howling wind, Kazuya Tsurumaki might have noticed the figure faintly emerging from the blinding mushroom cloud much sooner.

"what--"

This exclamation came not only from Tsurumaki Kazuya, but from everyone.

The figure emerging from the thick smoke, though mangled, still took a resolute step forward without hesitation. Large areas of armor had been peeled away, revealing red tissue resembling human muscle beneath. The left arm, used to deploy the domain, was mangled, vaporized from the forearm down by the explosion.

But what truly terrifies is the white patch that spreads across his body, symbolizing that the part belonging to the Apostle is also being assimilated by the Seraphim at this moment.

However, He was now powerless to fight. Both His temporarily missing body and the power of the nascent angelic being assimilated needed time to gestate and regenerate. Watching the apostle, its surface gradually eroded by white, sink into the sea, everyone knew that He would return with even greater, more swift and violent power.

------

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The flavor of sake can change unexpectedly depending on the food served with it. Shinji Ikari never imagined that he would learn new lessons after returning to this peaceful and tranquil world.

Shinji Ikari stood atop the sun deck, gazing at the shimmering sea in the distance, his floral t-shirt fluttering in the wind. His gaze moved past the nearby naval patrol boats to the distant fishing boats, their lights illuminating the boundary between the sky and the sea, like a string of pearls floating on the surface.

"Kirishima-kun, have you ever heard of the Sword of Damocles?" Shinji Ikari asked.

"I learned in textbooks that Damocles was a courtier of Dionysius II of Italy in the fourth century BC, and he was very fond of flattering Dionysius. He flattered him, saying: 'As a great man with power and prestige, Dionysius is truly fortunate. Dionysius proposed to exchange places with him for a day, so that he could experience the fate of a leader…'"

At this point, Kirishima suddenly understood why Shinji Ikari had suddenly brought up this anecdote.

"At the banquet that followed, Damocles thoroughly enjoyed being king. As dinner was drawing to a close, he looked up and noticed the sword hanging above the throne by only a single horsehair. He immediately lost interest in the food and women and begged the tyrant to spare him, saying he never wanted such good fortune again." Shinji Ikari finished the rest of the story calmly. "A person's responsibilities are commensurate with the power they possess."

Following Shinji Ikari's gaze, Mana Kirishima looked at the distant sea. In the fluorescent water, there seemed to be a huge creature, like a whale or some legendary deep-sea monster.

They should be leaving this area now. Kirishima Mana suddenly felt a little scared, but she knew it was impossible.

The yacht was only discovered to have less than half fuel after it was rented, and Shinji Ikari had been having too much fun, leaving it adrift at sea, propelled only by the sea breeze. Judging from the distance traveled, it's still in Tokyo Bay, which is really bad.

The food on the yacht is quite plentiful, enough for two people to eat for several days, but what if we run out of food before we reach shore? Should we eat ourselves first?

Mana Kirishima was lost in thought, but she and Asuka, being the same type of person who takes action, skipped and hopped over to Shinji Ikari.

At this moment, Shinji Ikari, shirtless, was hoisting the sail. His muscular back, completely hidden by his clothes, was revealed. The deck lights illuminated his drenched sweat, which trickled down his back. The action of hoisting the sail reminded Mana Kirishima of those sailing instructors in the port area who slept with rich women.

These handsome, muscular men would pretend to teach wealthy women about water safety, sailing ropes, astronomy, and meteorology. Then, they would take them to a remote sea area, raise the sails, and show off their alluring physiques to lure the lustful women into committing crimes on the spot.

"What an evil man," Kirishima Mana suddenly realized. She finally understood why Shinji Ikari had rushed all the way to the depths of Tokyo Bay—it was all part of such a treacherous and vicious scheme. Her willpower simply couldn't withstand it; she just couldn't!

Shinji Ikari turned his head warily to look at Mana Kirishima, who had walked up to him. He had initially thought that this spy from the unknown organization wanted to assassinate him, but seeing her holding her face and wiggling her buttocks, he felt that she was like a female sea serpent in heat.

—Even so, Shinji Ikari did not look away.

She was wearing a swimsuit, which Shinji Ikari knew. He remembered how she had skipped and hopped over to him when she found it, specifically telling him she was going inside to change and asking if he wanted to come along. While this was quite impolite, beneath her resemblance to Rei Ayanami, Mana Kirishima was a graceful, long-legged beauty. A white towel was draped over her shoulders, and she wore a basic one-piece swimsuit, the kind typically worn by students.

But it was very erotic. It was entirely because of the girl's exposed breasts and the alluring cleft between her thighs.

"I just came to ask what you want for supper. There's still some sushi in the fridge. But to preserve the food, we can also go sea fishing..." Kirishima Mana's voice trailed off.

Normal swimsuits have padding and insoles to protect women's privacy, especially school swimsuits. But it was clear that the girl had deliberately torn off all three, and even under Shinji Ikari's gaze, she couldn't stop the development of her breasts, which only grew harder and harder.

If there's a reaction in the lower body—just thinking about it makes me want to cover it up with my hands as soon as possible.

—But Kirishima Mana desperately held back, because thinking about it that way actually made her feel excited!

"It'll probably be in Ginza. I want to eat teppanyaki at Kaiho-tei," Shinji Ikari said after thinking for a moment.

Ginza? Isn't Ginza in Second New Tokyo City? This is on the sea! You threw all your communication devices into the ocean. Kirishima Mana was confused. She'd even thrown her own into the sea, prepared for months of relentless humiliation, and you're telling me this?!

Shinji Ikari ignored the female spy beside him, whose inner thoughts were far too complex. He took the trench coat hanging nearby and draped it over Mana Kirishima's shoulders. Under normal circumstances, he truly was a refined and elegant young nobleman.

Immediately afterward, the roar overhead drowned out the sound of the waves, and suddenly yellow searchlights lit up the dark night sky. These yellow lights rotated and swept across the surrounding sea, and suddenly a huge MiG transport helicopter appeared in front of Kirishima Mana in the pitch-black night.

Standing in front of the hatch at that moment was Misato Katsuragi, who looked exhausted, but she still managed to force a smile when she saw Shinji Ikari.

"I'll treat you to ramen when we get back," Misato Katsuragi said.

However, he was only there to pick up Shinji Ikari and casually took away the girl with his extremely suspicious identity as well.

Without receiving any instructions from her superiors, Misato Katsuragi acted on her own, hoping to appeal to Shinji Ikari's emotions and persuade him to return. But that was just a thought; looking into those molten gold eyes that reflected the entire bustling Tokyo Bay, Misato knew he had his own plans.

Perhaps it's a bloodbath? Or perhaps it's to make Gendo Ikari bow and kowtow every ten steps to receive him? Or perhaps it's to watch NERV crumble?

But given Misato Katsuragi's familiarity with Shinji Ikari, none of these are true.

Because she had never seen Shinji Ikari look like that before; his eyes, reflecting Tokyo Bay, seemed to be filled with molten gold, and he was hiding something far more terrifying in his heart.