Nobita's Time Heist

……

“Even so, even knowing it’s all in vain, he will still do his best. He, like me, hopes that humanity can return to normalcy, and that Ayanami can go home with us.” Nobita looked at Unit-01, which seemed like an ant trying to shake a tree. Despite the slim hope, a sliver of comfort rose in his heart.

As long as there is one person.

It would be enough if just one person were willing to stand up and reject this seemingly beautiful illusion.

The effort he put into this world was ultimately not in vain.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The immense difference in bio-force fields gradually made Unit-01 unable to sustain itself; its ten fingers began to crack, and blood gushed out. High in the atmosphere, the blood droplets almost instantly condensed into dark red ice crystals upon being ejected.

Shinji and Unit-01's synchronization rate had reached an astonishing 400%. While fully mobilizing the AT field, he also suffered a severe backlash—the pain of broken finger bones was transmitted to him, and the pain of his fingers almost made him faint on the spot.

"Waaaaah! Waaaah..."

Shinji bit his tongue, using the pain to force himself to stay awake. The pilot throttle shook violently, the LCL solution inside it swaying back and forth as if boiling. This was the closest place to Lilith, and also the place where Humanity's power was strongest. He could feel that if he relaxed even slightly, he would lose his mental barrier and merge with the LCL solution once more.

"Zizzizi..."

God's force field is like a high wall, eroding his power every moment. Continuing to wear him down like this will undoubtedly lead to no good outcome.

Shinji bit his lip hard, let out a hoarse roar, forced his hands together, and moved forward an inch.

"laugh!!"

Like shattered glass, the seemingly indestructible realm of the gods has finally developed cracks.

The price was... Unit-01's entire hand snapped off backward under the immense recoil, becoming a bloody mess, completely unrecognizable as a "hand." Nobita, watching from the side, couldn't help but shudder, unable to imagine what such pain would be like for Shinji.

But, unexpectedly, Shinji didn't utter a sound. Unit-01 only remained still in that position for a few seconds, as if the pain had been transformed into sustenance and quietly swallowed by him.

……

That hideous face was trembling uncontrollably.

"You...you were watching, weren't you, Nobita..."

Shinji's voice was unusually excited. You could tell he was almost fainting from the pain, and his body was releasing a lot of adrenaline, giving him a feeling of euphoria. "Sometimes, I can't help but wonder, if you hadn't come, what would we... what would we have become?"

"Perhaps I will immerse myself in that perfected world and never come out again. It's just too wonderful there. My father, my mother, the people who love and care about me, everything I long for, I can find there."

"But now, I can face my own thoughts more clearly..."

The AT field erupted at that moment, like a sapling breaking through the soil. Even though all ten fingers were worn down, a breach was still made in the realm of the gods. Thus, the boy's heartfelt words could finally reach the ears of the gods.

"I cannot accept this future! I absolutely must bring Ayanami back—!!"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

……

In the void, the fluctuations of particles began to lose their regularity, and the once stagnant nothingness began to ripple. The girl, who should have been completely merged with this physical body, seemed to have formed her own mental barrier because of his call, and her form was gradually becoming clearer.

"Humanity has made its choice, and that choice will not change as long as the sun, moon, and earth exist."

Her voice was gentle yet distant, as if it were across seasons of time, proclaiming her decision as Lilith.

"..."

She turned her head to look at Da Xiong, cupped her hands to her heart, and for the first time, her delicate and serene face displayed a rich array of expressions.

It was a smile that was breathtakingly beautiful.

"Thank you for coming to me."

Chapter 395: The Beginning, the Last Apostle

Countless beams of light rose from the Earth's surface, creating a spectacular sight from space. This once-obscure planet now resembled a cosmic light show, with each person a shimmering pixel, collectively forming this extraordinary scene.

The three teenagers who had saved humanity sat on a cloud, overlooking the spectacular changes on the continent, all remaining tacitly silent. Except for Ayanami, who was back in her classic light blue school uniform, Shinji and Asuka were still wearing their EVA pilot suits. They lay in the very center of Tokyo-4, a land that was one-way transparent, allowing them an unobstructed view of everything happening below. The obelisk cast a huge shadow, perfectly blocking the sunlight and preventing the rising sun from being too glaring. Unit-01 and Unit-02 were parked not far away, the sunlight illuminating their hulls as if they were coated with a thin layer of gold; overnight, they seemed to have become harmless objects of the landscape.

In the countless days and nights preceding this, people had grown accustomed to dramatic changes in the world, to the painful lessons of the Second Impact, and to the apocalypse that had once only appeared in sensational films and television dramas. But no one could have imagined that in just one night, this "commonplace" dangerous world would become a thing of the past. A problem that had plagued the world for years had been perfectly solved; the great undertaking that had consumed vast amounts of human, material, and financial resources, and had left the entire world spinning in disarray, ultimately ended like a joke.

In the end, only two high school students, who were theoretically 14 years old, witnessed it all.

"Where would they be at this time?" Shinji looked at the sky, cleared by the sunrise, and lay back, letting the sunlight shine through his palms. He murmured, "In a few hours, we should be able to see Saturn's rings, right?"

"She doesn't have a fixed speed of flight. For her, moving through space is as simple as eating and drinking. In the end, the First and Second Apostles were originally beings from the universe, and they are just returning to the universe now."

Despite her intricate connections with the Angels, Rei Ayanami still subconsciously used terms like "First Angel" and "Second Angel," seemingly proof of her growing self-awareness. In her heart, she undoubtedly belonged to humanity.

"The essence of the Angels' relentless invasion is instinct; they want to merge with the body of the First Angel. In the initial stages of evolution, they chose the Fruit of Life, pursuing the power of immortality. Therefore, they are creatures driven entirely by instinct, lacking much judgment. Commander Ikari used this to deceive all the Angels, imprisoning the Second Angel at the bottom of the Final Dogma District. In this way, even if the NERV base here were to be breached, the worst-case scenario for humanity would not occur."

"At the same time, according to SEELE's secret orders, he was also secretly pushing forward the Human Instrumentality Project and adding his own schemes to it. Using the Second Angel's genes as a prototype, he created Unit-00 and Unit-01, and cloned me. All of this was part of the plan."

"In short, this is a battle filled with intrigue, gamesmanship, and negotiation. To him, we are nothing more than pawns who happened to appear on the chessboard."

Rei Ayanami had never spoken such a long speech in front of others, but her thoughts were exceptionally clear. She had completely sorted out everything that had happened in the past few days from a completely detached perspective.

However, Shinji, being involved in the situation, was unable to detach himself from his emotions.

After all, it's Gendo Ikari.

After all... they were his last blood relatives in this world.

"..." Asuka hugged her knees, looking somewhat sullen. Although she had won, she felt like she hadn't completely won.

"What's wrong, Asuka?" Not knowing how to respond to his father's question, Shinji skillfully steered the conversation away, asking with a smile, "This is a day of immense significance for all of humanity, you know. We should be at least a little happy."

"At the last moment, I wasn't of any use at all." The girl hugged her legs, burying her head in her knees, and mumbled, "I saw my mother come to pick me up. She wasn't the one I remembered; she was a mother who was still very clear-headed. She said she would take me to a place where I wouldn't have to work so hard, where we could be together every day and do what we wanted... So I went..."

She half-covered her face, whether out of guilt or because the memory was too beautiful for her to forget.

However, after much persuasion, she finally agreed to tell others what had been weighing on her mind.

"When I woke up again, I was still in the cockpit of Unit 2, like I had a long, beautiful dream. But it was all over... From the day I was chosen to be a Chosen One, I knew that all these Angels that appeared were minor characters, and in the end, the most powerful one would emerge, and I, as the representative of the human elite, would fight him to the death."

Her voice lowered, like an eggplant that had been battered by wind and rain, suddenly wilting.

"But the final result was disappointing. I don't even have the courage to leave this beautiful dream..."

"Don't think like that, Asuka. Look..." Shinji blinked, trying his best to think of something to comfort her, "The survivors in the base were basically saved by you and Misato. That's quite an achievement, isn't it?"

Asuka remained sullen. Clearly, she hadn't taken saving lives seriously from the beginning; she'd just been helping out casually. Having missed the final, long-awaited battle, and with Adam's soul and body merging and leaving Earth, this opportunity to prove herself would never come again.

In other words, starting today, she would go from being "a representative of humanity's elite" to someone "worthless except for piloting EVAs." This rapid shift in identity was difficult for the proud young woman to accept. Meanwhile, Shinji, whom she had always considered an ordinary person, represented the will of all humanity, breaking away from the Human Instrumentality Project built on beautiful illusions, and forcibly halting the so-called Human Instrumentality Project. This stark contrast made her feel even more distressed.

“It’s not over yet, Asuka.” Rei Ayanami saw through her thoughts even earlier than Shinji, and calmly said from her unique perspective, “There are still Angels left on the ground.”

"Top student, do you think I'm stupid?" Asuka rolled her eyes at her, annoyed. "The First Angel's body has already flown to Saturn, so what can those guys do? Without a target, these guys are like hibernating beasts, finding a place to cower. Even if they're lucky enough to run into someone active outside, they're just helpless little shrimps."

“I’m not talking about them.” Rei Ayanami’s tone was meaningful. “Thanks to Nobita and Shinji, there are still a large number of extremely dangerous Angels on this planet. And our actions have inevitably provoked their hostility.”

"Lilin, an apostle that split off from the Second Apostle Lilinth, is commonly referred to as 'human'."

"Our battle with this last apostle is far, far from over."

Chapter 396: Truth Lies Within the Edge of the Sword!

"Given the current situation, you still dare to initiate negotiations. One has to admire your courage, 'visitor from outer space,' Mr. Nobita Nobi."

In the dim space, the familiar stone tablet lit up once more. Even though Speaker Gil's face couldn't be seen, his tone betrayed his anger. So much time and resources had been invested, so much effort had dragged on, almost to the point of exhaustion, and just when all the pieces were finally complete and a glimmer of success appeared, it was abruptly shattered. Judas, who had attempted to steal divine power, was punished, and those who sought to gain perfection through this were disgusted, as if they had swallowed flies. What had been transformed into LCL solution with an incredibly sacred heart, under the blessing of near-faith, was forcibly pulled out during the process of perfection, returning to flesh and blood.

Aging, illness, and death—these factors that constantly plague them have returned, like being pulled ashore after getting used to the buoyancy of a swimming pool. Their bodies are forced to experience the heavy pull of gravity once more, leaving them too exhausted to straighten their backs.

The Instrumentality Committee naturally harbored immense hatred for the instigator who had sabotaged their plans.

Unfortunately, emotions alone cannot solve any problems; in this world, strength ultimately prevails.

"Gendou Ikari is dead, dead in the collapsed Final Dogma District... Although, you probably don't really care whether he lives or dies. To you, he was just a slightly higher-level pawn, even though you almost died at his hands in the end." Nobita didn't waste any more words. He knew very well that he wasn't good at dealing with these power-hungry politicians, nor was he good at verbal battles. Besides, with his absolute advantage in strength, he had no need for such convoluted tactics.

"From this moment on, I will take full charge of the follow-up work at the NERV base." Nobita pushed up his glasses and looked at the stone tablet representing Speaker Gil, as if trying to pierce through the darkness and intimidate the other power holders hiding in the shadows. "Let me make this clear first, I am not him, and you'd better not treat me the way you treat him."

"...Can I take this as a self-recommendation appointment notice?" Speaker Kiel paused for a moment. "NERV is the executive branch of SEELE. Our relationship with you is like that of EVA to the Chosen Ones—the relationship between hands and feet and brain. Essentially, NERV is a secret intelligence agency with extensive operational privileges around the world, requiring the backing of even greater powers."

“Without SEELE, you are nothing, you have no legitimacy whatsoever, you are just a mob of armed illegal thugs.”

"Then you'd better be careful." Nobita laughed nonchalantly. "Our weapons are pretty powerful, you've seen them, haven't you?"

Speaker Kiel remained silent.

In the final moments, SEELE made the decision to wipe out the NERV base. This decision wasn't just aimed at the ordinary employees working at the base, but also at the pilots of the three EVAs. To this end, they deployed all the mass-produced EVAs they had, cooperating with special forces, but the final result was not good. At least, after that night, these mass-produced EVAs, which had also required enormous manpower and resources to produce, were all declared scrap, causing SEELE a loss of trillions. The transmitted video showed that they were all wiped out by the pilot of Unit-02 alone, the entire process taking only three minutes, as simple as eating and drinking.

This kind of behavior is like spending all your savings before the end of the world, thinking about going crazy one last time, but the end of the world doesn't come as expected.

"They're just mass-produced machines. With the puppet system, we can produce as many of those as we want."

"..."

Nobita stopped arguing with him and instead raised his right hand, snapping his fingers in the coolest way he could think of. He and his friends had played this game together when they were very young (a classic scene from the first episode of the Daiyama version of the anime, "Welcome to Nobita's Paradise"). The two fingers touched, and a soft "snap" sounded in the dimly lit room, which seemed a bit frivolous.

The next moment, a faint tremor even reached inside the house.

“You…” Speaker Kiel’s tone instantly lost its composure, “What did you do?”

“That was just a deterrent shot. I had one of the secondary guns in the fortress adjust its angle and fire a shot at the uninhabited ocean. It was a subatomic orbital bombardment cannon. As for the principle… to be honest, I’m not entirely sure, but hundreds of thousands of these cannons firing simultaneously could easily level you all.” Da Xiong’s tone wasn’t threatening; it was as if he was simply stating a fact that one plus one equals two. “If you make any more moves, the next shell will land right on your heads.”

……

As the enormous fireball continued to expand above the sea, Speaker Kiel and the power structure he represented fell silent.

As Gendo Ikari summarized, power is nothing more than a game for those with ulterior motives, a shadow that plays on the wall.

When the sword is in someone else's hand, it serves no purpose.

"So, this is what you wanted too, Fuyutsuki?" He turned his attention to the old man standing beside Nobita, whose eyes remained half-open, and questioned him, "This is blatant betrayal! Have you forgotten that we rescued you from the slums? Without us, you'd still be in that little clinic, treating penniless people who can't afford to go to the hospital!"

“If that’s the case, I might live a few more years.” Dongyue shook her head with a smile, not taking the other party’s threat seriously at all. “That lifestyle is much healthier than scheming against people like you.”

"Furthermore..."

"In the final stages of completing the plan, SEELE launched a brutal purge against us, resulting in over 100 deaths and injuries. So many lives lost, it seems that 'betrayal' cannot be the only explanation."

Despite the shifts in their positions, Fuyutsuki remained calm and composed, showing no sign of being intimidated by the pressure from the other party's power.

Those who initiate power must possess sufficiently strong deterrents to make people firmly believe that going against their will will result in terrible consequences.

Throughout history, the power structures of all nations have essentially been the same. Once the lack of deterrence becomes apparent, overthrow is not far off. The NVER base, now with Nobita's strong investment, possesses the fighting power to rival, or even completely overwhelm, SEELE. The previous subordinate relationship will naturally change.

“You may have misunderstood our actions, Speaker Gil. The threat of the First Angel is indeed gone, but a large number of Angels still remain on Earth. If these guys were to reappear, only EVA could stand up to them. Realistically speaking, I think it is far too early to disband NERV.”

"Admit it, Speaker, you still can't do without us. The dream of completion can't be realized, so it's time to return to reality."

"Looking at the world, which other organization has as much first-hand information as we do?"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Adam and Lilith's physical bodies have both departed, and thus, humanity has forever lost the chance to return to Lilith's egg.

It's time to start making plans for the real world.

Chapter 397: Deterrence and Facing the Wall

Amidst the roar, the wreckage and ruins were removed piece by piece as construction robots began to repair every corner of the NERV base.

These little guys are incredibly efficient; in just one night, they've almost completely recovered to their previous state. Fortunately, Asuka and Misato arrived in time, repelling the special forces sent by SEELE to silence them and saving the most valuable equipment in the entire base—the biocomputer MAGI. All the data from the series of studies were stored inside, which was one of the key points that allowed Fuyutsuki to continue her power struggle with Chairman Kir.

Even so, when they descended to the lowest level and witnessed the devastation of the Final Dogma District, they couldn't help but sigh.

The red cross that once bound Lilith collapsed with a crash, falling to the ground and breaking in two. Arrogant humans once attempted to manipulate the power of the gods, but ultimately suffered the gods' backlash, and these ruins are proof of that. This place once held a vast sea of ​​LCL solution, but now not a single drop of orange liquid can be seen. After the restoration, it seems everything related to it has vanished, leaving only an empty cage.

"Is it right down here?" Fuyutsuki's gaze swept over the rubble piled on the ground, lit a cigarette, and asked casually.

“Probably.” Nobita’s tone was somewhat complicated. “I shot him through the knee to make sure he couldn’t escape.”

"Well done, Nobi-kun. Don't doubt it. This is the right choice for everyone." Upon hearing about the death of his former boss, with whom he had many connections, Fuyutsuki showed no other expression. "I know that guy. He was a born ambitious man... Such people can only show their value in chaotic times. In peacetime, his existence is a scourge to society."

"Being able to get off here is a relatively dignified ending."

peaceful years.

Indeed, without Adam and Lilith, all the remaining Apostles on Earth fell into hibernation. For the first time since the Second Impact, the sword of Damocles hanging over all humanity seemed to have been removed. After decades of being steeped in the sense of impending doom, human society, like a spring compressed to its limit, should logically be ready for an explosive release, shouldn't it?

Nobita shook his head noncommittally. "Teacher Fuyutsuki, do you really think there will be 'peace' going to happen?"

"After experiencing 'all of this'?"

He pointed to the broken cross lying on the ground, his meaning unspoken.

Now that their dream has been shattered, SEELE will absolutely not let them off the hook. Before things even got done, they were already trying to raze everything to the ground; now that things have been ruined, their retaliation will undoubtedly be even more intense. Shinji and Ayanami, in particular, will suffer the most severe retaliation. These people are the embodiment of power in this world; power has no limits, and in the right environment, it will take root and spread without restraint. Even if Nobita can kill them physically, he cannot guarantee their safety completely.

Xiao Shan had once explained to him that the relatively peaceful global environment is actually built on a very sensitive nuclear deterrent. The mutual commitment to mutual destruction is one of the main reasons why major powers can still maintain restraint. In the eyes of those in high positions of power, you only have the right to negotiate with them when you possess weapons that can threaten them.

Therefore, it becomes essential to continue the existence of NERV.

After Gendo Ikari's death, only Deputy Commander Fuyutsuki remained as the highest-ranking officer in this intelligence agency. Fortunately, he wasn't planning to end the mission so abruptly. The two hit it off immediately and proactively dialed the conference hotline, giving Speaker Kiel a sharp rebuke.