Shinji Ikari, returned from Warhammer

The engineers who once belonged to NERV now work for WLLLE. At this moment, on the deck of the bridge, the silvery moonlight gently slanted onto a red figure.

She leaned against the railing, holding a sketch in her hand. It was a blurry portrait of a boy, his smiling face offering her a bento box.

Fourteen years have passed, and many memories have begun to fade, but this seemingly insignificant scene remains etched in her mind. Asuka doesn't know what she was feeling when she actually picked up her brush and drew this sketch related to him.

She pulled her hat brim slightly, not wanting anyone to see her current expression.

"If I were the bright moon, I would surely cross that pitch-black night to come and see you." A woman's voice came from below the deck; it was Mari Makinami reciting the verses in a chanting tone.

The sounds that would normally be considered noisy were perfectly timed today. Asuka turned her head to look at the rolling dark clouds above, which seemed to complement the calm sea below.

"Princess Asuka, the moon is so beautiful tonight, meow!" Makinami's cheerful voice came from below the deck.

Hearing the shouts from below, Asuka also looked up from the clouds. "I'm still reading."

As she responded, she heard the sound of someone climbing up the ladder using both hands and feet.

"Of course, studying is always necessary, no matter what." Mari's voice was incredibly cheerful.

Asuka turned around, composed herself, and took a deep breath. "Really, it's almost time to board the ship."

Twenty-eight-year-old Asuka tried to change the subject, but the moment she turned around, she was stunned. "Why are you wearing a uniform?" And the uniform looked very familiar to her.

If Shinji Ikari were here at this moment, he would also find it very familiar, because it is the same outfit that Mari Makinami was wearing when she fell from the sky and landed on him.

Mari was wearing a school-style plaid skirt with purple stockings, a white shirt with a dark green tie. She was lifting her skirt to check if she had picked up any dust as she climbed the stairs. "Well, I'm different from the princess. I've only met him once."

Asuka's eyes narrowed slightly, and she quickly realized who Mari was referring to.

"If I hadn't worn the same clothes as back then, I probably wouldn't have been recognized?"

"That guy is gone," Asuka said coldly.

Mari looked up in surprise, but at that moment Asuka had already turned to the side with her hands in her pockets, seemingly gazing at the bright moon over the sea.

"Speaking of living, Ritsuko also said that the guy almost destroyed the world, but in the end he dissolved in LCL liquid and disappeared."

Mari looked at Asuka, who had her hand on the railing, and seemed to always have her back to her. Before, this proud princess called him "idiot" and "fool," but when did she start calling him "that guy"?

Perhaps the time has been too long, so long that people have forgotten the past.

Looking back, although the top student was always aloof, although Misato always favored that guy, and although that guy had no sense of responsibility, if the world had always been like this, it wouldn't have been so bad.

But nothing lasts forever. Those who meet are born, those who part are destroyed. Back then, I stubbornly believed… that the top student should be reading on a bench in the garden, responding to me with that detached, indifferent attitude; Hikaru was always concerned with the class's affairs, annoyed by the idle gorilla Toji, and would drag me to lunch every day during break; Misato Katsuragi would always be that imposing operations officer driving her blue Mazda, but at home she was carefree, with a chaotic schedule, and the title of Commander-in-Chief was still a distant future for her; and I was even trying to learn to cook, seemingly wanting to stew a beautiful dinner to surprise that guy…

But things change. Everyone left, and that guy didn't come back, leaving her behind.

She gazed at the sea, where rolling dark clouds obscured the bright moon.

"The goal this time is simply to reclaim Unit-01," Asuka said coldly, perhaps because she didn't believe she would ever see him again.

But then a pair of hands landed on her shoulders from behind, and Mari, with a seductive voice and a charming smile, said, "But what will you do if you see me? After fourteen years apart, won't you give me a Sleeping Beauty kiss?"

Asuka gritted her teeth and blurted out, "Of course we'll punch him away! We'll beat him up badly!"

"Haha, what an exciting development! Youth is truly wonderful!"

But these words made Asuka lower her eyes. "What kind of youth do you mean with this cursed body of mine? Don't be ridiculous."

Asuka brushed away Mari's outstretched hand, coldly walked to the other side of the railing, and continued to gaze at the sea.

“Princess, we have a much longer youth than humans,” Mari whispered from behind.

"During the US operation in Misato, Unit 8, which was in the best condition, was responsible for recovering Unit 01, while Unit 02 was responsible for providing cover," Masumi said.

Asuka didn't turn around, but listened quietly to the battle plan, her face calm and composed.

"Then let's switch to Plan B! Princess, come along too!" Mari patted her chest excitedly, telling Asuka about her new plan. "That way, Little Dog will be very happy, right?"

"Huh? Ha!" Asuka took a deep breath.

With her arms gripped, she couldn't bring herself to look directly into Mari's excited eyes. She took a deep breath, and in an instant, she regained her composure. She lowered her eyes and turned her head away.

"I already told you, that idiot Shinji is gone."

The enormous silver moon emerged once more from the dark clouds, its vast light shining upon this deck.

—At the same time, engineers in the distance were working diligently on the final stages of the project.

"Thirty minutes, fuel 100% maintenance, refueling begins."

"There are no obstructions on the northern launch orbit, and the situation is good."

With time running out, Mari didn't try to persuade her any further, but instead turned and walked towards the locker room.

Asuka gazed at the sea, and her previously fragmented memories became clear again, even the black and white images now taking on a bluish hue. It was Shinji, the idiot, carrying a bento box and smiling at her.

A few minutes later, in the locker room, Mari, who was dressed in her combat uniform and ready to leave, suddenly heard hurried footsteps behind her.

"Nekogami Glasses, I'll go!" Asuka said, panting, her right hand resting on the doorframe.

"That's how it should be!" Mari pursed her lips, then suddenly stomped on the table with a happy smile.

"Don't misunderstand, I just didn't want to give it to you. This task is too important!" Asuka blushed slightly and hurriedly explained.

"The path you wish to take has no end in sight~ Yet, why grit your teeth and continue the fight~"

"Stop singing, it's so noisy!"

Asuka scolded him impatiently, but the moment she turned her head, her pupils contracted.

“…Idiot Shinji.”

At the same moment, the vast moonlight slanted into a cave.

Wearing a black combat uniform, Rei Ayanami gazed across the sea at the massive project that was about to begin in the distance.

She moved her lips, unsure of what expression to wear at this moment. But she vaguely remembered someone having taught her a long time ago that she should smile.

--who is it?

The early morning sunlight shone on Shinji Ikari's face, which was covered in fluffy hair, probably from Asuka's hair getting into his nostrils.

Shinji Ikari wouldn't admit that he dreamt about Asuka last night, and also about the girl who wore face wash and landed on him with her parachute at the sports meet.

After Akagi Ritsuko's explanation, he roughly understood that it might be a story unfolding in a parallel world. His own soul and his own body were probably very special.

But this time was different. It was as if I had crossed the boundaries of the world and was no longer a spectator, seeing Asuka and the face wash girl looking at me with surprised expressions.

At that moment, they seemed to see themselves.

"...Baka Shinji, don't lick..."

Suddenly, a sound came from below. Shinji Ikari looked down and saw a girl wrapped around his thighs like a four-legged animal, her head buried in his chest, on the plain-colored towel that served as a blanket. The sound was coming from her mouth, just a murmur in her sleep.

Only Asuka would address him in such a tone, and the curve of her hand pressing against his shoulder was now distorted. But Shinji Ikari simply pulled the towel up slightly, gazing at her clean-cut face—confirming it once more.

——Asuka.

She was special to herself—

He brushed her hair aside and kissed Asuka's eyes. At that moment, the girl's eyes suddenly opened.

"Good morning," Shinji Ikari greeted.

"...Good morning." Asuka replied to him reflexively. Asuka was very light, and perhaps because of the towel blanket, Shinji didn't feel anything. However, the real touch reminded him of his current situation.

—I think I rejected her last night.

To ask him to give up an entire forest for a single tree... Oh, Shinji Ikari certainly could.

But he wanted to think it over. Shinji Ikari would never admit to being a womanizer. He firmly believed that he was a warrior of pure love and a guardian of beautiful love, and that those absurd reasons were absolutely not true.

Some of the reasons were reasons that even he himself was embarrassed to say.

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PS1: This chapter's story is from the official comic of the final theatrical version, which can be considered a prequel to Dragon Raja: Wings of Mourning... (Just kidding, it's a prequel to the theatrical version Q.) (Don't ask why the official bonus comic of the final theatrical version tells a prequel story to Q.)

This scene clearly expresses the author's homesickness... or rather, Asuka has been in love with that idiot Shinji for the past fourteen years.

The main problem is that this scoundrel doesn't speak human language.

Actually, everyone likes Shinji. Even those two who seem to have no connection at all might secretly like him.

Those interested can check out the official comic. If you're even more interested, please vote, thank you!

PS2: Here's a book I recommend from a friend.

This is a crossover anime/manga series, and I'm currently writing about EVA. But you can also just read it as an EVA fanfic.

Retake, which is featured in both the old TV series and the theatrical version, unfolds along two parallel storylines and is a time-travel theme.

December 9th: The Arrival of Unit 6

But this seemingly ordinary scene was something that made someone's heart flutter.

But her response was almost fierce; she hugged Shinji's neck tightly and bit down on the mark she had left the night before—the bite mark on Shinji's left shoulder blade.

"Are you a dog, Ms. Asuka?" Shinji Ikari said, making a face.

"How cunning," Asuka said coldly. "Now I understand your deceptive rhetoric. What about wanting to have breakfast with me in the morning? You just couldn't bear to part with all those other women, could you?"

Asuka was very angry, but she was even angrier at herself.

Because she had to admit her feelings for Shinji Ikari, and also had to admit that she had been moved by him yesterday, she did not refuse when Shinji touched her inappropriately, and even responded to his kiss.

But this bastard, scumbag, trash, scoundrel, social parasite, lolicon, horny dog, playboy actually rejected me! He actually rejected me?!

What's even more shameful is that I didn't reject him last night, and I didn't even dislike the feeling. I even responded to his hands, which were as lewd as frog urination.

At this moment, Asuka suddenly understood what her history teacher meant by "banging her head against the ground." Because right now, she wanted to jump off the building, unleash her atomic breath, and destroy the city that had caused her so much pain.

Fortunately, she had a backup plan last night, which at least prevented that bastard from hooking up with women for a while.

"Where are my clothes?" Asuka's mood suddenly improved.

"I've folded it here for you." Shinji Ikari was a little surprised by Asuka's unpredictable attitude, but there was a neatly folded yellow nightgown by the bedside.

"And underwear, yesterday's clothes are no longer usable." Asuka curled up in the blankets, refusing to show even half of her shoulder. "The pink bow-tie one is in the second to last drawer at the bottom of the wardrobe on the left side of my room, and the school uniform is hanging in the middle of the first wardrobe on the right side."