Shinji Ikari, the pilot of Unit-01 during the Spirit Awakening Era

"I...we need to be on guard against possible attacks!" The attacker was already very clear about one thing: Shinji Ikari had already suspected them. The attacker signaled to his men to get ready, and he took out a stun grenade, preparing to throw it.

After all, their superiors intended to capture Shinji Ikari alive if possible, and they had prepared some special equipment for them so that they wouldn't be easily defeated by a strong opponent.

"So this is how you plan to meet me?" Under the horrified gaze of his teammates, the attacker turned around in a panic, only to find that Shinji Ikari had turned around and then pulled the safety pin off the stun grenade in his hand.

Then Shinji Ikari raised his foot and kicked the attacker, sending him flying. The captain collided with his teammates before quickly escaping back to the other side.

"Buzz!" After the stun grenade exploded, Shinji Ikari turned around, raised his hand, and started firing. Although the gun in his hand was not one he was very familiar with, his marksmanship was still quite accurate. He basically killed them one shot at a time, before they could react.

“They were planning to attack me, so it must be.” Shinji Ikari shook his head. “The window of opportunity for an attack is closed. No fools will dare to come and die. Let’s put all the squads closest to my position under review. If necessary… I can ask my sister for help. I believe she would be happy to do so.”

“…” Misato Katsuragi’s lips twitched, even though she knew it was Shinji Ikari threatening the possible accomplices of the attackers.

“Good idea! This is indeed the fastest way.” Ritsuko Akagi’s words made Misato Katsuragi turn her head stiffly. “Go directly to Unit-01’s location, and we’ll find you there.”

"it is good!"

Chapter 306 Before the Attack

"They've already paid the price of five helicopters to hunt you down? That's quite a sum." Standing in front of Unit-01, Misato Katsuragi munched on a McDonald's hamburger, her face filled with a somewhat gloating expression. After all, for her, it was a rare sight to see Shinji Ikari suffer misfortune. This little guy possessed a maturity beyond his years, and seeing him make a fool of himself was an extremely rare treat. Therefore, Misato Katsuragi was very happy to see Shinji Ikari make a fool of himself.

“Not many people can do this, and it’s basically certain that the other side has infiltrated the engineering department and the security department. Whether they have spies in the technical department or not, only they themselves probably know.” Ritsuko Akagi looked up at the huge head of Unit-01 in front of her and said somewhat speechlessly, “You called us here to intimidate them, huh?”

“No, it’s just that the environment here is too open, making it difficult to eavesdrop.” Shinji Ikari shook his head. “To be honest, I don’t even trust my dad anymore… well, I’ve never trusted him. The whole of NERV seems like a huge pit, full of defectors.”

"Are you a little resentful that I led you into this mess? It seems we all understand now why your father left you with your grandparents and never looked after you." Misato Katsuragi sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. It's not surprising that there are moles within NERV, and quite a few of them, involving multiple departments. After all, it's a United Nations organization; it would be strange if there weren't some of these kinds of troubles.

After all, several major powers, even though they are willing to lend a helping hand to save the world, will not fare well themselves if something big happens to the world. Just like TERRA and NERV, they receive large sums of funding every year and pressure the Japanese government to accept their presence in Japan.

“No resentment, what is there to resent? Everyone bears the consequences of their choices, don’t make up any hypocritical excuses.” Shinji Ikari shook his head. Gendo Ikari had his reasons, no problem. But his absence from his wife and parents made it hard to feel any goodwill towards him. And no matter how you look at Gendo Ikari’s various messes, the ultimate goal is still to be with his wife. In a sense, the TV version of Unit-01 biting off its head… could this be considered the final punishment that Yui, in her rage, gave to her husband?

"So, he is him, and I am me. I have no expectations of him, and he shouldn't have any expectations of me either. Although I still owe him a punch, we've settled our scores. From now on, we'll just be ordinary colleagues." Shinji Ikari pursed his lips. The only person who might want to improve their relationship was Shinji's mother, Yui, who was trapped in Unit-01. After all, Yui could understand why Gendo Ikari was fighting so hard, so she could understand and sympathize. But perhaps that was all she could understand and sympathize with.

"So, besides hastily summoning me back, what other decisions has the Commander-in-Chief made?" Perhaps due to the somewhat awkward atmosphere, Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi remained silent for a while, so Shinji Ikari asked again after a short while.

"Continue with the plan and speed up the process. Unit-01 should go directly into quasi-combat deployment. There probably won't be enough time to prepare Unit-00." Ritsuko Akagi held a cup of hot milk, took a sip, and frowned, clearly still a little unaccustomed to it.

"They've hit the nail on the head perfectly," Shinji Ikari commented simply. "Unit-03 is definitely suspicious; they're clearly preparing for something to happen!"

“Although there are no problems according to the inspection checklist.” Ritsuko Akagi laughed. Yes, there are no problems according to the checklist, which is the biggest flaw and the problem! Even the most advanced NERV technology at present, Unit-01 and Unit-00, which has been almost completely studied, will have a few minor problems when a comprehensive inspection is carried out.

"So you're telling me to prepare myself mentally for this?" Rei Ayanami and Asuka, who was about to become a test pilot, were also called in. Hearing this, Asuka said with a wry smile, "I've already seen the video. Are you guessing that the American-made EVA crossed that line?"

“You know what? Although I’m not very tech-savvy, during my conversation with Ayato Kamina, we both had a very interesting idea.” Shinji Ikari tilted his head and looked at the women around him. “Is his Winged Zephyr or my Unit-01 really just machines devoid of meaning and feeling?”

"!" Misato Katsuragi's face stiffened as she looked at Ritsuko Akagi beside her. Ritsuko's glasses reflected an eerie light, and her eyes behind the lenses seemed to be filled with a poignant feeling.

"Consciousness?" Ritsuko Akagi murmured the word, a wry smile on her face. Does EVA have consciousness? That's a really good question. She glanced at Unit-01, who was silently soaking in LCL. "So, do you have an answer?"

“Originally, there wasn’t.” Shinji Ikari shook his head. “But after the Dark Tournament, I think I have an answer.” He can already drive his body on his own, and he even ate raw Orochi sashimi. You still say he has no consciousness? What kind of situation would constitute consciousness?

"So what is Ayato Kamina's answer to you?" Shinji Ikari's answer was reasonable and well-founded, so Ritsuko Akagi stopped worrying about it. "I'm very curious. TERRA has done a very good job of keeping the information about Yonex the Winged Goddess very secret. We don't have any corresponding data at all, and we even had to steal it from the enemy."

“Ayato Kamina doesn’t know either, but he mentioned a girl who often appears in his life, sometimes indistinctly. He recognizes her when she appears, but when she’s not there, he feels as if she doesn’t exist.” Shinji Ikari looked at Ritsuko Akagi. “I asked my sister, and she said it’s like rewriting reality.”

"Your sister? Oh, right, I haven't congratulated you on your marriage yet! You idiot Shinji!" Asuka kicked Shinji Ikari. "Now that the problem is solved, you should be very happy."

"There's nothing to be happy or unhappy about." Shinji Ikari took a kick from Asuka. Although the plot seemed to be the latest OVA version, all sorts of random things were strung together, leaving Shinji somewhat confused. He didn't know if things would happen as he remembered. "Let's not talk about that for now. Have you ever entered Unit-03's insertion plug?"

"We've been inside, and we've conducted a preliminary start-up test. Everything's fine; we're just waiting to start Unit-03 directly." Asuka nodded. Since Ritsuko Akagi didn't object when Shinji Ikari confirmed that Unit-03 had a problem, it meant that Shinji's guess was very reasonable. "So you think they might have tampered with the insertion plug?"

“No, my guess might be even crazier,” Shinji Ikari said with a laugh. “Be prepared to have close contact with the Angels… Why are you three hitting me!” Misato Katsuragi punched Shinji Ikari in the stomach without any hesitation. Asuka showed off her training results with Mei Isayama by kicking Shinji Ikari in the chest. Even Ritsuko Akagi reached out and grabbed Shinji Ikari’s ear.

“Speak properly, why are you making such a lame joke halfway through the conversation?” Misato Katsuragi said irritably.

"I understand what Shinji Ikari means now." After Shinji Ikari easily caught her kick, Asuka angrily withdrew her foot. "An Angel? Wasn't it said that the European branch was destroyed because of related experiments that caused the Angel to go berserk? Although the battle was resolved by deploying Unit-05, which was not yet completed, the entire branch was destroyed in the explosion."

As the pilot of Unit 2 who came from Europe, Asuka was more concerned about what was happening in her hometown. "I know quite a few people there, and it's really a pity."

“This is indeed a tragedy, but what we need to worry about now is whether something similar will happen to you in the future.” Shinji Ikari shook his head. “So you need to be prepared, after all, no one knows what the consequences of doing so will be.”

"It certainly sounds like a very challenging task." Asuka glanced confidently at Shinji Ikari. He had done a lot and done it very well. It seemed that this time it would be her turn to take the lead.

"You two should both prepare well. Shinji, you stay in the nearby lounge for a while. This is the deepest part of NERV, and you can't get in without a certain level of security. I'll have Maya bring you your bedding in a bit. Is there anything else you need?" Misato Katsuragi said. If the other side could easily enter and leave this place, then NERV should just cease to exist and disband on the spot.

"No, I happen to have some things that I need to digest in a quiet environment." Shinji Ikari nodded. Since he had regained his understanding of the "Mirror of Still Water" state under the onslaught of the Berserker's attacks, he hadn't had a chance to review and consolidate it properly. This deserted place was definitely a good place for him to concentrate on his training.

"I'll take you," Rei Ayanami said simply. Everyone looked towards Rei's location, as it was very rare for her to make such a request.

“Sure, Maya has a lot on her plate, and Rei probably has a lot of questions she wants to ask Shinji.” Ritsuko Akagi’s eyes flickered. The little girl in front of her seemed as lifeless as before, but in fact, according to Ritsuko Akagi’s assessment, after she and Shinji Ikari unleashed the Flame Finger, her eyes had become noticeably more lively.

"Then let's get busy! Although there's no time to add temporary facilities, it won't stop me from giving Asuka an extra layer of protection." Ritsuko Akagi gestured to the others, since Shinji Ikari had decided to train here.

Asuka took a few steps and looked back several times. When she finally saw Shinji Ikari smiling, she made a very childish face at him, clearly still harboring a lot of resentment towards him.

Shinji Ikari shook his head with a wry smile, simply waving to them as they entered the elevator. Only then did he turn back to look at Unit-01 peeking out from LCL. "From now on... I'll have to work hard!" Shinji Ikari sat down cross-legged and began to meditate.

In the following days, apart from Rei Ayanami coming three times a day to bring Shinji Ikari food, everyone else was busy with their own tasks. Even Unit-01 was taken away for maintenance. The entire space was left with only Shinji diligently training, repeatedly practicing the Invincible East Style and circulating Holy Light Aura, trying to find his own path between the two. Time was spent in Shinji's repeated training sessions and activating the Mirror of Stillness state, striving to improve as much as possible in these few days.

"Huh? So it's time already?" When Shinji Ikari saw that Rei Ayanami had brought him food and also her own combat suit, he immediately realized that it was time for him to pilot Unit-01.

"Unit-0500 has been loaded onto the train and is heading to the Matsushiro Proving Grounds. Unit-0630 has been hoisted to the activation test site. It's 0700 now, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, they've begun reinforcing the sealing measures. Asuka will arrive at the test site at 0900." Rei Ayanami briefly described the situation to Shinji Ikari. "Mei and the others will be resting at Mei's shop in Tokyo-3. If you have any messages to pass on, I'll help you."

Shinji Ikari took his combat suit from Rei Ayanami. "Then I need to get there as soon as possible." Shinji nodded, indicating that he understood what he needed to do. "I just don't know if this whole thing will unfold as we expect."

"Safety first." Rei Ayanami put down the NERV standard breakfast: a vegetable puree, a glass of milk, an egg sandwich, and a jelly-like gelatinous food of unknown origin. Of all these things, only the sandwich and milk tasted like normal food. However, these foods were specially brought by Rei Ayanami at Shinji Ikari's request. His focus these days was not on fancy meals; he could eat whenever he wanted.

"Yes! I will." Shinji Ikari looked at Rei Ayanami, whom he called his younger sister but whose true identity was a complete mess, and smiled. "It's nothing, it's alright."

"...The medical department is already preparing two beds."

"Cough cough... These guys! Can't they think of something good?"

Chapter 307 Unit 3 is about to be activated

"So what are you thinking about?" Ritsuko Akagi asked Asuka, who was somewhat silent, while typing on her computer.

"Nothing, just a bit annoyed. That idiot Shinji is making all sorts of crazy guesses. How could EVA be an Angel?" Asuka said, sounding a little irritated. She now understood that Shinji must have known something beforehand. This guy had always been so secretive. According to what they said when they were summarizing their intelligence, he even had the people from Terra investigate SEELE, and they actually uncovered a huge secret: they had a base on the moon! Babem, upon discovering this, was causing SEELE a lot of trouble.

“It’s possible!” For some reason, Ritsuko Akagi confirmed Shinji Ikari’s guess without even looking up, which made Asuka sigh.

"Yes! Yes! I understand! I understand! Shinji-chan is truly incredibly intelligent, powerful, and has a wide circle of friends. She can't be compared to a pitiful person like me." Asuka spread her hands, looking like she had given up. She had her own pride. For a long time, she was known as the best EVA pilot, and even the old Europeans regarded her as the next Jeanne d'Arc who would save the world.

However, after Shinji Ikari piloted Unit-01, he almost completely overturned everyone's worldview. Unit-01 proved one thing with its achievements: it's not that you're incapable, it's that you're too weak! This shattered everyone's preconceived notions, including Asuka's. So when she went to NERV headquarters, Asuka was determined to compete with Shinji. But after just one sortie, she understood the huge gap between herself and Shinji. She wanted to learn from Shinji, but her proud and arrogant nature prevented her from doing so.

"Pfft... You don't have to think like that. I haven't been working for nothing these past few days. If something happens, you can find a way to save yourself, right?" Ritsuko Akagi said with a smile. She naturally cared a lot about Shinji Ikari's opinion, but the fact that no problems had been detected left Ritsuko Akagi with no good solution. So all she could do was prepare for the worst possible scenario.

Asuka and Ritsuko's vehicle slowly rounded a bend, and Asuka noticed the welding scaffold still emitting sparks beside them. "They're about to start the start-up test, and the engineering department hasn't finished construction yet?"

"They plan to withdraw completely half an hour before you start Unit 3. It's also a fight for their own honor. After all, the attack at headquarters involved the engineering department, which made them feel very ashamed. So they stopped the reconstruction work at the Third New Tokyo and focused on strengthening the Matsushiro Test Site. You'll see something even more surprising in a little while."

"This is truly an unexpected source of motivation." Looking at the sparks spraying out like a waterfall, he felt a sense of awe. "Just like Shinji said? When we believe in our own power, that power resides within our own hearts?"

"This isn't Shinji's line, it's the Eternal Emperor's line." Ritsuko Akagi didn't hesitate to expose him. She knew very well that if Unit-03 hadn't suddenly been forced to conduct the experiment, Shinji Ikari would likely have put on this suit and gone to cause trouble for some cult, since they had already infiltrated his fiancée's family.

"Oh...hoo...hoo~ Princess and the evil prime minister's carriage has arrived at the devil's castle~" In the distance, Mari, who had almost parachuted onto Shinji Ikari's face earlier, lay on a hillside watching the situation below. She smiled as she looked at the group that had arrived. "It seems that our loyal craftsmen have done their best. Now it depends on whether Princess can handle her carriage. It's just that our dear knight dog doesn't seem to have arrived yet."

"Shinji Ikari just left the base, the plane should be here soon. Let's see if his parachuting skills are as bad as yours," Kaji Ryoji said with a smile. The little trick that Misato Katsuragi and Shinji Ikari conspired to pull was very effective. After hearing Shinji Ikari's fierce statement that he planned to have his sister in charge of the interrogation, the unlucky guys basically all immediately chose to confess that they were indeed under the command of SEELE.

After all, for normal people, death is perhaps the greatest punishment. As the old saying goes, if you're not afraid of death, what else is there to be afraid of? But they dare not be stubborn about this now. Shinji Ikari plans to ask Kirie Himuro to intervene, and the fact that Shinji's sister dotes on her brother is a well-known fact in NERV. Dare to touch Shinji? Ha, falling into the hands of the evil god, death is definitely a luxury.

Holding complete intelligence and a chain of evidence, including records of SEELE's payments to these people to buy their lives, Kozo Fuyutsuki went directly to confront SEELE. As of Shinji Ikari's departure from NERV headquarters, the meeting between Kozo Fuyutsuki and SEELE showed no signs of ending.

"Hmph, then I can start looking forward to it? This is the last trick the big bad guys pulled in this whole mess." Mari said with a smile. To be honest, Mari was quite surprised by Shinji Ikari's actions. This kid's power shocked her. Not to mention, she was being watched closely while keeping an eye on the test site below.

Clearly, the attack on Shinji Ikari has angered many people. If it weren't for the fact that this seems to be an internal matter for NERV, which they couldn't easily interfere with, many organizations would have already sent strong personnel to participate in this matter. Even a certain McDonald's manager drove his food truck over to join in the fun.

"It's certainly something to look forward to, but you need to be careful. The knight you're talking about won't show any mercy when he swings his fists," Kaji Ryoji added. When a giant like Unit-01 starts fighting, for ordinary people on the ground, EVA's enormous size and the immense power that comes with it mean that almost any move he makes will lead to annihilation.

"Don't worry! I'm all set. Once the experiment starts, I'll leave the equipment here, and you can watch the videos at your leisure. The data recording is already done, but I suspect many people here have similar plans!" someone said with a smile. "Hmm? I think your information is inaccurate~ The prince arrived on a motorcycle~"

"Yes, I also have another aircraft loss record here. It seems to have made an emergency landing due to mechanical failure. SEELE's determination is truly stronger than we imagined." Kaji Ryoji said with a wry smile. Supposedly, Katsuragi Misato had already gone through most of the unlucky guys in the base, so most of them should have been caught by now. But there are still some, and they can still persist in committing crimes against the wind. Seeing this, one has to admire SEELE's ruthlessness.

"Speaking of which, NERV's supervisor seems to be neglecting his duties. He's busy flirting with beautiful women all day long. Doesn't he worry about getting killed?" Mari noticed that Shinji Ikari, who seemed to be on the phone and about to enter the preparation room, suddenly came back out, as if something had been thrown at him. "Tsk tsk, Woof-kun is up to no good!"

"His experiences are far more extensive than you imagine. After all, he now has an older sister and a fiancée, both of whom are formidable figures. Moreover, it's said that his fiancée left his real girlfriend on Mount Hikami, seemingly wanting to discuss something. It's really interesting." Naturally, Kaji Ryoji's information came from Katsuragi Misato.

"Oh~ then I'll have the chance to hear you tell me more in detail. But now, I need to hurry and get going. The craftsmanship at Long Er Motorcycle Shop that you recommended is indeed excellent; the parts are beautifully tuned. It's just a pity that the budget someone gave me was only enough for a regular motorcycle." Mari quickly stood up, pointed the camera at herself, and ran straight towards the back of the hill, where her motorcycle was. "See you later~"

"Alright, Asuka, didn't you already change into your combat uniform? Why are you making such a fuss? Besides, we all changed together behind the curtain." Misato Katsuragi suppressed a laugh. When Shinji Ikari walked in, Asuka was already almost dressed, just needing to zip up the fly and deflate it to finish. Shinji hadn't actually seen anything.

"Hmph!" Asuka shrugged at Shinji Ikari, turning her back on him. She hadn't expected him to come at all. Unit-03, which she was about to enter, was right in front of her, while Unit-01 was five kilometers away. When Shinji suddenly walked in, although nothing important was seen, his entire back was completely exposed to him.

As for why Shinji Ikari changed his clothes, he found a note in the battle suit that Rei Ayanami gave him. It was in Ritsuko Akagi's handwriting. Ritsuko Akagi had prepared a spare battle suit for him and kept it in her possession. Although the probability of this happening was very low, she was obviously still on guard against someone using this to trick him. But now Shinji felt that it was Ritsuko Akagi who was tricking him, and it was no one else.

After changing into his combat suit in the locker room, Shinji Ikari picked up his waist pouch, hesitated for a moment, and then put the bottle of liquor and the chocolate-covered liquor in the locker. Instead, he chose to stuff something he had never brought with him into the EVA into his waist pouch, intending to bring it into the EVA's insertion plug. It wasn't a photograph, but the Mirror of the Gods representing Himuro Kirie (Himuro Kirie on Mount Hikami smiled slightly, while Kurosawa Aisei twitched his lips and muttered that using a photograph was a mistake).

"The experiment will begin in 37 minutes. Are you ready?" As Shinji walked out, he saw Asuka leaning against the door. He casually straightened his coat and greeted her.

“We’ve made all the necessary preparations, but…” Asuka was a little worried, troubled by what Shinji Ikari and Ritsuko Akagi had said.

"No buts. If anything happens, just stay inside the plug and protect yourself. I'll come rescue you." Shinji Ikari flicked Asuka's forehead. Asuka was a little taken aback by Shinji's sudden action, but Shinji obviously didn't wait for her to react. He walked over, got on his motorcycle, pulled the handlebars, and sped off. Five kilometers was nothing to him. As for his motorcycle, he could just ask the engineering staff he knew to take care of it when he got there.

"This guy... idiot Shinji!" Asuka rubbed her forehead, rolled her eyes in annoyance, and turned to walk straight up to the elevator.

"Sis, can you feel it?" Amidst the stunned stares of the entire NERV technical department, Shinji Ikari took out the Divine Mirror from his pouch. After channeling spiritual energy into it, the Divine Mirror slowly activated. However, Himuro Kirie didn't seem to be there; all their testing instruments showed everything was normal. "Okay...you guys talk!"

In Shinji Ikari's perception, a wisp of his sister's consciousness was standing behind him, surveying the cramped space—an environment that, if left unattended for too long, could definitely induce claustrophobia. Meanwhile, the arrival of Himuro Kirie immediately alerted another consciousness within Unit-01, Shinji's mother, Yui Ikari.

"..."

"..."

The two women looked at each other, and for a moment there was an awkward silence.

“Okay, Mom, this is my adopted sister, Himuro Kirie. She's helped me a lot. Without her saving my life, your son would have died several times already. She's much more reliable than my dad.” Shinji Ikari twitched his lips, crossing his legs in his seat as he spoke. Himuro Kirie tilted her head and gave Shinji's mother a simple bow as a greeting. Himuro Kirie remained very aloof in front of strangers. “And this is my mom, sister. You two chat.”

"Oh! Thank you so much!" Upon hearing Shinji's words, Yui Ikari immediately became excited. During their last mental exchange, Yui had discovered that her son was covered in wounds, and now, hearing that her savior was right here, she was overjoyed. "Shinji, you've really gone to a lot of trouble for me out there."

"...Not bad." Himuro Kirie glanced at Shinji Ikari and sighed. "He's my brother. I know him, so of course I'll protect him." Then the two women started chatting and quickly became acquainted.

Seeing this, Shinji Ikari felt at ease and continued his meditation, seeking a state of mind as clear as a mirror and as still as water.

“Ritsuko…” Misato Katsuragi looked at the screen with a wry smile.

"Ah... I understand. Don't worry, I'm an expert at making up stories." Ritsuko Akagi already knew about Shinji Ikari's improvement in his realm, but she obviously didn't expect that he would be able to project that realm onto Unit-01 so quickly. The light from the screen shone on Ritsuko Akagi's glasses, obscuring her eyes, but it didn't hide the smile on her lips.

The image shows Unit-01 sitting cross-legged in a rice paddy, with its hands resting on its knees, palms facing upwards. Although it is motionless, ripples are clearly visible on the surface of the rice paddy, radiating outwards from where Unit-01 is sitting.

They had just received intelligence that Shinji Ikari did not drink the special sake brewed by Ryoko Sakaki as usual, but simply placed it aside and left. It should be noted that Asuka drank some of it before heading to Unit-03.

This situation naturally worried them both somewhat. Asuka's performance in the simulation mode was already comparable to Shinji Ikari's performance in his first simulation battle! If Asuka were to unleash her full potential, while a victory against Shinji wasn't guaranteed, she might at least have a chance to severely injure Unit-01...

Now, even though Unit-01 was just sitting cross-legged, seemingly doing nothing, everyone instantly felt calm upon seeing this scene. They no longer needed to worry about anything; Shinji Ikari must have his own trump card, which was why he hadn't drunk any alcohol.

"Strange data detected, abnormal airflow..." Hyuga Makoto, standing next to Katsuragi Misato, said with a surprised expression.

“We don’t need to pay attention to Unit-01’s status. Our mission today is to get Unit-03’s startup data.” Ritsuko Akagi turned to Maya Ibuki and made a beheading gesture. Maya Ibuki was taken aback, but immediately understood what Ritsuko Akagi meant. She quickly typed in a series of commands, rapidly removing all data related to Unit-01 piloted by Shinji Ikari from the uploaded messages, and then focused all the playback angles on Unit-03.

It didn't take long for calls to flood NERV headquarters. Clearly, the various countries weren't particularly interested in the launch test of a mere EVA; after all, who didn't own an EVA? What they really wanted to see was Shinji Ikari piloting Unit-01, wondering what new tricks he could pull off this time! After all, it was Unit-01 that single-handedly elevated the status of all EVAs to a level that would astound that person.

Naturally, Ritsuko Akagi's decision immediately received the support of NERV's upper management. After all, Shinji Ikari had just been attacked, and it was impossible for them to simply give in to his wishes at this time. If they didn't use their cards to their advantage, Kozo Fuyutsuki and Gendo Ikari wouldn't be worthy of being the leaders of NERV.

"Unit 3 startup test enters standby mode! Last ten minutes."

"10-minute countdown begins. Final system check."

"Power supply system confirmed!"

"Closed system confirmed."

"The final team members have been confirmed to have left the site."

"The remote monitoring system is working normally."

"The insertion plug of Unit 3 has passed self-test; the entire system is normal."

"Insert the insertion plug!"

Chapter 308 Unit 3 Out of Control

As the motor operated, the insertion plug was automatically inserted, the bolts were tightened, and the additional armor cover closed. Asuka officially entered Unit-03. At this moment, the command center in the distance began to operate, and all the staff began to report their status on the computer screens in front of them.

"Neural circuit first contact! System-wide contact normal!"

"Restraint system! Enhanced restraint system self-test complete, all pressure valves normal, all locking system normal!"

"Umbilical cable connection!"

"The connection is normal, and there is no problem with the explosion bolts."

"Main power supply connected, switching complete, self-destruct device confirmed online."

"Internal voltage regulation confirmed, reinforced bracket confirmed to be intact."

"2013 items were inspected, and the third review has been completed."

"It was basically intact upon first contact!"