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

Kavenka is amazing. I've clearly thought of what to write, but when it comes to typing, I just can't get the words out. I'm going to sleep now, hoping I'll have better ideas when I wake up in the morning. This is such a frustrating thing.

Lately, it seems like I'm suffering the consequences of staying up too late. I feel groggy during the day and listless at night; my overall condition is terrible.

Chapter 434 Arrival

"Yes, I've already gotten off the plane. No surprises... It shouldn't be considered a surprise if a vampire is strangled on the plane." Mei Isayama received a call from Shinji Ikari as soon as he got off the plane. Shinji Ikari was obviously calling to check if Mei Isayama had landed safely, since in this damned era, the plane crash rate was still a bit high.

"I'm sorry, I can't provide you with any more assistance this time." Shinji Ikari sounded somewhat helpless on the phone. He was still facing overt or covert surveillance from TERRA, or rather the Babem Foundation. After all, their so-called "cooperation" was a mutual ulterior motive, a temporary alliance between two potentially hostile parties with a common enemy. They both had a clear understanding of each other's "sincerity."

Here I must say that the newly established security department of the Science Patrol is quite effective. They have discovered some private soldiers that the Babem Foundation was trying to hide around Tokyo-3. They then immediately used the pretext of clearing out the remnants of SEELE to broaden the horizons of these private soldiers.

Perhaps your power armor is indeed relatively better, but it's worthless compared to the 155mm grenade launcher.

Meanwhile, the Babem Foundation learned that all three EVAs were ready for combat. Moreover, based on the information gathered, Misato Katsuragi, the so-called head of the Science Patrol's Special Investigations Unit and former NERV Operations Director, had no intention of leaving anything behind for TERRA, which was under the control of the Babem Foundation. With the destructive power of the EVAs, as long as Shinji Ikari held off the enemy's trump card... it was just a matter of destroying houses, and the EVAs were more reliable than a husky.

"Don't make it sound like I'm one of those little women around you, okay? It's been so long since I beat you up, don't you remember? I used to be a little stronger than you." Mei Izayama laughed and scolded, telling Shinji Ikari not to worry about these things. Mei Izayama was no weak woman. She was a half-demon, and when she got really angry, even she was afraid of herself.

"Oh right, it looks like the person who was supposed to pick me up has arrived. I'll hang up now." After hanging up, Isayama Mei casually crushed the old-fashioned phone and threw it into the trash can. If she weren't worried about how horrifying it was, she would have liked to take a deep breath.

After doing all this, Isayama Mei walked towards a girl who looked like a schoolgirl. She was holding a sign that was obviously hand-drawn by herself. It depicted a cute chibi version of Isayama Mei wearing a kimono, with big hearts drawn on either side of the figure. The drawing was quite good; one glance was enough to tell who it was.

"Oh! Wangda-kun's comrade-in-arms is such a beauty?" Mari looked utterly shocked as she watched Isayama Mei dragging her suitcase towards her. Seeing Isayama Mei dressed casually, trying to conceal her beautiful figure, but even with a mask, her beauty couldn't be completely hidden, it was no wonder that people nearby had been constantly staring at her ever since she got off the plane. "That's why infiltration isn't easy~"

“Shinji once joked that as long as you can kill everyone, infiltration can still be carried out.” Mei Isayama took off his glasses and looked Mari Makinami up and down. “And you’re not bad either, are you?” After Yuu Aso got married and semi-retired, Shinji Ikari was the last teammate she recognized. As for the woman in front of her, she was just a guy who caused trouble for Shinji Ikari.

“What’s the point of infiltrating if you wipe out the enemy… But Shinji certainly has the ability to do that.” Mari suddenly choked on her words, a little speechless, and then looked at Isayama Mei in front of her with a suspicious look, “You… can you do it?”

The reason is simple: Shinji Ikari is already the most prominent among the new generation of S-class shinobi, so his strength is naturally not to be underestimated. If there are no unexpected events, he would be considered on par with the previous generation's Satoru Gojo, who could easily surpass him as a peer. Of course, if Shinji were to bring out his sister and his fiancée... then probably even among the S-class shinobi, there wouldn't be many left who could go toe-to-toe with him.

"Unfortunately, I've never been weaker than Shinji Ikari either." Mei Isayama narrowed her eyes. She was actually being underestimated. How interesting. How long had it been since she'd encountered such a situation? As the most ruthless Countermeasures Bureau, establishing oneself within it was no easy feat. And as a woman, Mei Isayama was someone who could go toe-to-toe with the bureau's leading lady, Yomi Isayama, before she became independent. Now, even if she gave Yomi a hand, Yomi might not be able to go toe-to-toe with her.

"Oh!? So confident?" Mari looked at Mei Isayama, a smile playing on her lips. For this operation, stronger teammates were always a better thing! And if their teammates weren't strong enough, that would be a real problem. "Then I hope we can work together smoothly!?"

"Let's go to the safe house first. This isn't the place to talk." Mei Isayama shook hands briefly with Mari, indicating that she seemed to have a tail following her, though she wasn't sure if it was following her or Mari.

"Understood! Let's go!" Zhenjiong cheerfully took Isayama Mei's arm, and the two, like best friends going on a trip, linked arms and prepared to set off.

"It's good that we've landed..." Shinji Ikari glanced at the demons lurking around him, and like Mei Isayama, he crushed his phone in his hand. "Sorry to keep you waiting. Let's get started. It seems like you'll have to take the blame."

SEELE will definitely investigate the connection between Shinji Ikari and Mei Isayama. Although both phones were purchased from the black market by Yuu Aso and registered with missing persons certificates, SEELE will still be able to find out if they are used too many times. Therefore, they will destroy these phones after some contact is established.

"Human! Don't you know you've walked right into a trap?" A tall, burly demon unleashed his demonic aura with unbridled arrogance! He glared murderously at Shinji Ikari before him. This fair-skinned little fellow's gaze had actually instilled a sense of fear in Shinji!

"Oh? Is that so?" Shinji Ikari glanced at him, and the next instant, Shinji Ikari suddenly appeared in front of the demon. Without using any special moves, he simply kicked the head of the terrified demon away with a single flying kick. "Come on, all of you come at me at once. I'm in a hurry. I told my girlfriend I was going to get back for dinner."

The demons, who had initially been somewhat intimidated by Shinji Ikari's sudden attack that killed one of their stronger demons, instantly erupted in rage upon hearing such provocative words, and swarmed towards Shinji.

"This number... is barely enough." Shinji Ikari shook his head. These low-level demons actually had a strange sense of discrimination and superiority towards humans, and couldn't stand hearing him look down on them. They always ended up getting eaten every time he provoked them. It was rather... boring. "Blazing Sun! Purple Flame Bullet!"

After Shinji Ikari kicked away a massive purple flame bullet, it was less like a cluster of flying flames and more like a halo of light that swept across the area, skipping the burning process entirely. The demons that rushed at them were instantly turned into clumps of charred ash, which slowly drifted away in all directions amidst the rising scorching heat.

"Oh, so there's a smart one here." Shinji Ikari looked at the Lucky Demon who had collapsed to the ground, trembling. He frowned; something seemed off. She didn't have the usual stench of a demon. "Have you eaten anyone?"

"..." The demon opened its mouth as if it wanted to say something, but after saying a few words, the female demon suddenly realized that although it could understand human language, it had not yet learned how to speak it. It could only shake its head desperately, hoping that Shinji Ikari would not misunderstand and send it to its death with a punch.

"Hehehe..." A woman's laughter suddenly came from the woods, "I didn't expect that Shinji, you are also someone who follows justice with looks."

"Kuni, you actually crept over here?" Shinji Ikari looked up at the nearby figure with some surprise upon hearing the voice. "Why aren't you with Kyo recovering from his injuries?" Shinji pursed his lips. He only learned from Grandpa Nakiri that Kyo actually had such serious injuries. It has to be said that Mibu Kyoshiro is truly amazing. Although it's the TV version, to seriously injure Kyo with a single sword strike and for him to take so long to recover is already very frightening. At least Shinji Ikari himself knew he couldn't do it.

"He's still recovering, don't change the subject. You actually held back? Was that a new move?" Izumo no Okuni looked at Shinji Ikari. This little rascal was even stronger than before, which really surprised her. She wasn't surprised that Shinji Ikari would get stronger, but wasn't the speed a bit too fast?

"She just happened to be lucky and stood outside my attack range. As for the increase in strength... don't you see how many battles I've been fighting lately?" Shinji Ikari said irritably. "Fine, it's good that you're here. Be my witness and tell me that if they think there's anything strange or supernatural, it's just a bunch of demons causing trouble."

"So this is your Kurt team's mission?"

"more or less."

Chapter 435 Preparation

"Hmm?" Shinji Ikari took out his phone and glanced at the messages on it. During this time, as the Science Patrol's strongest warrior, without deploying EVAs, Shinji had been running around clearing out monsters and demons appearing in various places.

Shinji Ikari's willingness to do this was not without reason. On one hand, the United Nations was not only looking at NERV with suspicion, but Shinji Ikari, who had demonstrated the strongest combat power among the EVA pilots, was also one of the biggest suspects. Shinji Ikari himself did not have many good ways to change this situation.

It can only be said that the cooperation process has enhanced mutual recognition and trust between the two parties, and this point seems to have been recognized by the United Nations. At least after Shinji Ikari kept going on missions, Misato Katsuragi informed Shinji that the United Nations had increased their annual budget for the next year by 30%. Although it is still less than half of the original NERV level, it is still very considerable.

"Finally ready? They used it secretly, huh?" Shinji Ikari and Misato Katsuragi had indeed returned to Tokyo-3, but another person had been invited to TERRA headquarters. As one of humanity's most advanced researchers in the field of mystery and strange metaphysics, Ritsuko Akagi had received the invitation. "It seems Ritsuko Akagi is quite angry."

However, given that Ritsuko Akagi was pregnant and did not intend to leave Tokyo-3, the exchange became primarily data-based. This, of course, provided Ritsuko Akagi with crucial information for assessing TERRA's progress. But TERRA was also well aware of this outcome, so from the outset, this data exchange became, to some extent, an intelligence war between the two sides.

Now, the final result is in: Ritsuko Akagi's estimate was significantly off; TERRA was activated a full 72 hours ahead of schedule.

This was beyond everyone's expectations. After all, as a large-scale, one-off device built out of nowhere, unlike TERRA which was doing this for the first time, the Science Patrol, which inherited from NERV, had plenty of experience in this area. Based on the time plan set at various nodes, Ritsuko Akagi easily calculated the time when the enemy should prepare to launch the Jupiter annihilation operation.

But now, TERRA has proven with its actions that their capabilities exceed everyone's expectations! If they want to, they can achieve engineering miracles like NERV!

"Hoo..." Shinji Ikari sighed deeply, closing his phone. This was no longer something he needed to worry about. Undoubtedly, at the former NERV base, everyone was already busy at this moment, waiting for Shinji to return. Without a doubt, all three EVAs would have completed their preparations. At that time, Shinji would only need to board the EVA and fight alongside his Unit-01 once again.

The only problem was that Shinji Ikari sighed, "Ayato, you probably can't hide it anymore this time. After all, the time has come to realize your dream, but I'm sorry... humanity needs to move forward."

After reminiscing about this, Shinji Ikari closed his phone, flipped down the hillside, jumped onto his motorcycle, and sped off towards Tokyo-3. In the dust kicked up by the motorcycle tires, the dust obscured the corpses of demons scattered behind Shinji.

"Tell me what's going on there." Shinji Ikari made a phone call through his Bluetooth headset, directly contacting Makoto Hyuga at the Third New Tokyo City Science Patrol base.

"Okay! The UN air force is rushing over, and more than twenty Vamilians have already taken off, with even more flying in from afar. There are also enormous monsters; based on the identification signals, they seem to be... controlled by the Babem Foundation." Hinata Makoto stared at the scene in shock. "Is this the... power of the Babem Foundation?"

"It is indeed quite considerable, but all of this is still too superficial. The Babem Foundation has collected a massive amount of resources, and apart from a few EVAs, this is all they have? I don't believe it." Ritsuko Akagi looked at the screen with a cold smile, at the few Vamilians confronting the surging MU-race warships and Dorems, and the huge fleet of machines rapidly approaching from afar.

"The battle has begun, and the fighting is extremely fierce!" Hinata Makoto looked at the war before him in horror. The massive Dorems were clashing with the human army, with all sorts of energy and projectiles flying everywhere. Unfortunately, the Dorems of the MU race were clearly more powerful. Most of the human's already limited warships were quickly destroyed by the enemy, and this was only the first moment of the engagement.

"Shinji!" Misato Katsuragi grabbed the phone from Makoto Hyuga's hand and spoke rapidly to Shinji Ikari on the phone, "Unit-01 has been loaded onto the transport ship, but because the other side has moved up its time, they can't attend to the situation on the other side anymore. So are you sure you want to head towards TERRA headquarters immediately?"

“Yes, we have no other choice.” Shinji Ikari sighed. He had originally wanted to time things and see if he could resolve the issue of the warships that SEELE had secretly built, but now it seemed that the plan was completely unworkable. Unit-01 could only prepare to be launched directly towards TERRA.

"Understood. How long will it take you to return?" Misato Katsuragi nodded to Shigeru Aoki, who immediately picked up the internal phone in front of him and began to report the situation to the engineering department. Loading EVA onto the transport plane was no easy task.

"About an hour." Shinji Ikari slowly turned the handlebars, while Hayato Suzuki sped along the road at a speed far exceeding the road's original design speed. "If nothing unexpected happens, the battle will soon expand beyond Nejira Island. We need to be prepared accordingly."

"Prepare for what? We're not NERV anymore. We can't request unlimited support from the Japanese Self-Defense Forces or other countries' militaries. Sending three EVAs to the battle is the limit of what we can do right now," Misato Katsuragi said with a smile. She made it very clear that the Special Investigation Team didn't have many cards to play, and the combat power they could deploy was only this much.

“No… all we need to do is send Unit-01 there.” Shinji Ikari shook his head. “Unit-02 is going to support Mei Isayama. Rei, can you keep an eye on the house?”

"Hi..." Rei Ayanami nodded silently. For some reason, recently, Misato Katsuragi felt that Rei Ayanami's vitality was becoming more and more authentic, like an ordinary girl rather than a living doll.

"However, I will set off only after I am certain that you can solve the problem independently," Asuka added.

"Okay. See you in an hour then." After Shinji Ikari finished speaking, he cut off the communication, then pulled the handle, and his already fast speed suddenly increased again.

"If you leave late, can the southern part of Isayama Mei hold out?" Katsuragi Misato looked at the girl in front of her with a hesitant expression. Asuka had made it very clear, but after all, that was a place that SEELE had been operating for so long. Apart from the base on the moon, this base should be the most important.

"Don't underestimate my master." Asuka took a deep breath. "S-class isn't just about that idiot Shinji; Master Mei Isayama has already taken that step too!"

"Achoo..." Mei Isayama sneezed, then instantly looked utterly shocked. His S-rank rank self had actually caught a cold? Had he been attacked by a biological virus?! How embarrassing!

“It looks like Wangda-kun is in trouble.” Mari clapped her hands and tossed a map to Mei Isayama beside her. “So is there anything else that needs to be changed? If not, we’ll start tomorrow night.”

“No problem, underwater is my forte.” Isayama Mei glanced at the simple route drawn on the map. The two of them hadn’t been idle for the past ten days or so, gathering intelligence, collecting data, and spying from a distance. In the end, all of this was formed into the action plan on this map.

"I must say, your inexplicable abilities are indeed very convenient." Mari shrugged. She knew very well what kind of ruthless person she was in front of. It was only someone with her kind of mentality who was able to successfully cross the threshold of S-class.

“Now there’s only one last problem. Shinji, who was supposed to be our support, definitely won’t be able to come. If something unexpected happens, we might have to solve the problem ourselves.” Mari pushed her phone over.

"Oh, Tokyo Jupiter has disappeared?" Mei Isayama glanced at the news feed on her phone, her eyes immediately flashing. "It seems TERRA acted ahead of schedule, and by quite a bit."

"Yes, I bet Wangda-kun is cursing right now while rushing towards NERV—no, I mean, Tokyo-3—so it's just the two of us." Mari sat up. "So, we've decided to go after all?"

“Of course, there aren’t many problems with our plan, and it’s time we couldn’t afford to stay idle. If we give them a little more time, we might see them take off and head straight for space at any moment.” Mei Isayama slightly altered the dates on the blueprints.

"Hmm, so we're going straight to the beginner level before dawn? Okay."

"Then I wish you and me good luck."

"Yes."

Chapter 436 Participation in the War

"The MU race's fighting strength is much greater than we imagined." Sitting in the insertion bolt, Shinji Ikari looked at the battlefield situation on the tactical map, which was now almost a tangled mess of yarn, his face full of helplessness. Even a complete novice like him, who had never attended military school, felt a chill run down his spine.

Because of the forceful push by the Babem Foundation, the United Nations deployed far more troops than it had to fight the Apostles in this Jupiter destruction campaign, and also pre-positioned a considerable number of ground-based long-range attack forces around the city, clearly hoping to achieve a decisive victory in one battle! As a result, it can only be said that the United Nations had a somewhat unclear understanding of the MU race, a race that had been developing for tens of thousands of years, and from the very beginning of the battle, it fell into an absolute disadvantage.

Despite the support of ground firepower, due to technological differences, sophisticated and expensive anti-aircraft missile systems designed to counter human weapons are less effective than simple self-propelled anti-aircraft guns. The enemy could easily detonate the missiles in mid-air using something similar to a sonic weapon.

As for the Valmillions deployed by the Babem family, I'm sorry to say, but there were obviously too few of them. Although they could easily destroy those low-level Dorems that looked like clay dolls, they were simply annihilated when facing those special models of Dorems. All Shinji Ikari could see on his tactical panel now were a handful of them struggling to survive.

"This is truly a reckless gamble, regardless of the consequences..." Shinji Ikari's eyes turned cold as he looked at the casualty reports from the United Nations. The Babem Foundation was truly a madman; it shouldn't exist. A surge of murderous intent rose within Shinji towards his temporary teammates.

"They've noticed... Damn it! They're coming!" the transport plane pilot shouted in a panic. After all, anyone would have the same feeling when they saw a swarm of Dorem flying towards his large, clumsy transport plane.

"Turn around and drop the EVA, but after dropping it, you need to get out of there as quickly as possible." Shinji Ikari made the decision. Although there was still some distance to the target location, it seemed that the transport plane could not go any further. In order to transport giant robots like EVA, this transport plane was an engineering marvel even larger than the An-226. Although it wasn't just one, SEELE had once deployed nine giant EVA transport planes of the same model during the raid on NERV.

However, this does not mean that the valuable legacy left by NERV can be lost at will. After all, no matter how much SEELE has, what does it have to do with the Kurts? Not to mention the fact that they have already split up, a series of events in the past have already made the Kurts and SEELE mortal enemies.

It was precisely because of this "pleasant" atmosphere between the two sides that the United Nations was able to confidently employ the Science Patrol to resolve various troubles. Moreover, after the transfer of jurisdiction over Tokyo-3, the Japanese government's attitude towards the Science Patrol underwent a significant change.

Furthermore, they were also very interested in Tokyo-3, a city built with a lot of cutting-edge new technologies. If it weren't for the fact that the Science Patrol base below looked quite dangerous, they even considered relocating their current administrative offices from the cramped Tokyo-2 to Tokyo-3. Of course, this was just a thought and then they gave up.

"Understood, be careful!" The pilot was silent for a moment before deciding to carry out the order.

With the reorganization of the Science Patrol, the original commanders-in-chief and deputy commanders-in-chief, Fuyutsuki Kōzō and Ikari Gendō, were removed. The decision-making body of the Science Patrol was taken over by Katsuragi Misato and Akagi Ritsuko, and Ikari Shinji was also promoted in theory to a role similar to a front-line commander. Then Ikari Shinji started complaining that he had only three permanent support personnel under him. Yes, that is, Ikari Shinji, Asuka Langley Soryu, and Ayanami Rei.

Of course, Shinji Ikari also has command authority over some of the personnel involved in the battle on the front lines. However, with the reorganization of NERV, the Science Patrol is no longer willing to invest too many human resources on the front lines, so it is rare for Shinji Ikari to be able to command anyone.

As the machine turned sharply, Shinji Ikari, who was inside the insertion plug of Unit-01, could clearly feel the enormous centrifugal force. However, Shinji didn't say anything, but simply moved his body a little to prevent it from feeling stiff when he participated in the battle later.

"The enemy is approaching!" the pilot shouted. Such a huge transport plane makes a big commotion when it turns, and its turning radius is very large, which naturally gives the MU Dorem a chance to get closer. These guys are like flies that have caught an opportunity, frantically swarming in.

"Don't worry, with the attack power of these guys... they won't break through your defenses." Shinji Ikari's eyes flickered as he looked at the rapidly approaching red dot on the tactical screen and sneered. These MU clans shouldn't be completely unaware of any information, so Shinji Ikari really couldn't understand why these small fry were rushing in so frantically. Were they just sending grunt units to farm morale at the start of the mech battle?

A dense barrage of light spots and sound waves came crashing down, but right behind the transport plane, a massive AT field instantly unfolded. These Mu race Dolem attacks, in terms of both density and intensity, were certainly no match for NERV's opening ammunition clearance sale. That grand aura, which nearly staked all of humanity's offensive capabilities, was simply incomparable to these petty guys in front of them.

The vast AT domain formed an insurmountable barrier; even a dense barrage of attacks couldn't create a ripple. Several Dorem units, charging too fast, even crashed head-on into the AT domain, instantly turning into exploding fireworks.

Meanwhile, the transport plane, having completed its turn, began unloading excess weight under the pilot's control, and EVA Unit-01 slid out of the transport plane along the rails at the rear.

"Finally, I have a view." Shinji Ikari looked at the environmental view that was beginning to appear in the insertion plug. It was no longer the broadcast screen that he had used to save power while he was restrained. The difference was enormous.

"Tsk..." Shinji Ikari's joy was short-lived. Two nutcracker-like objects targeted him, unleashing a powerful energy blast that struck the front of Unit-01. Unsurprisingly, the AT Field easily blocked it. "Trying to bully Unit-01 because it can't fly, huh?" Shinji sneered. It seemed the MU Empire hadn't been paying much attention to intelligence gathering? Or perhaps they'd already exhausted themselves in their battle of wits with Babem. While Unit-01 couldn't fly, gliding was still possible if stamina wasn't a concern.

Golden wings pierced the sky, and the enormous wings of light that stretched out from behind Unit-01 spread out across the heavens, hundreds of meters long, almost tearing through the clouds. That's the absurdity of the mystical genre; whatever function you want, as long as your machine is high enough, it can provide it.

"Using such a stamina-draining move right from the start? Baka Shinji, you really underestimate your opponent." Asuka, sitting in the Science Patrol base, covered her face as she watched the satellite-projected image. This move was something Shinji Ikari had already demonstrated in the Pacific Ocean when they first met on Terra. The enormous light wings that unfolded on Unit-01's back and the Fish Angel that was cleaved in two by a single slash became Terra's direct assessment of Shinji's combat strength.

Today, in another collaboration with TERRA, Shinji Ikari once again deployed his Light Wings. This time, unlike last time when the Light Wings remained completely still, this time, with a gentle wave of Shinji's arm, the Light Wings opened and closed without hesitation. As the Light Wings passed, a large number of Dorem surrounding Unit-01 exploded wildly in mid-air.

Moreover, the flapping of the light wings caused a powerful air explosion nearby. In addition to pushing the transport plane carrying Unit-01 far away, it also caused great trouble to all the fighter jets flying in the sky in the distance, whether they were Dolem, Vamilian, or human fighters. They struggled and wobbled in the gale. The smoke cloud from Shinji Ikari's explosion was also quickly dispersed. The scene was filled with violence and bloodshed for a moment.

After Unit-01 made its move, it instantly attracted the attention of almost the entire battlefield. After all, the light wings were simply too conspicuous, and anyone who could move had already noticed it. However, regarding the terrifying combat power displayed by Shinji Ikari, their expressions were mostly uncertain.

"Playing tricks!" Asahina Hiroko's sycophant glared angrily at the purple giant. Undoubtedly, this was pure misplaced anger. Asahina Hiroko's death, coupled with his already deep resentment towards Kamina Ayato, and knowing who the pilot of this Unit-01 was, as well as understanding the relationship between Shinji Ikari and Kamina Ayato, immediately fueled his rage! His Dorem instantly sprouted enormous, sharp claws from its hands and charged towards Shinji. "That coward! Where is he?!"

"Pah!" Under Shinji Ikari's control, Unit-01's wings flapped, and space and distance seemed to disappear. In an instant, it appeared in front of the Dorem named Obrigard. Then, it flipped over and kicked Obrigard hard in the chest, sending him flying!

Because of its immense speed, it even created a sonic boom, and finally crashed violently into the water, carving out huge waves.

"That's it?" Shinji Ikari was a little dumbfounded. In the anime, his performance was quite remarkable, and he was one of the few who managed to harm the Winged Goddess Sene after her ascension.

"Shinji, TERRA has issued an order to abandon the Root Island. Please take note."

"These guys... can't they think of any other tricks? All they do is self-destruct all day long."

Chapter 437 I'm sorry, I chose fate.

"Shinji has indeed become even stronger." Ayato Kamina stood on the ground, looking at Shinji Ikari. He was now absolutely certain that this time, he truly needed to settle things with Shinji. With the destruction of Tokyo Jupiter, he became increasingly convinced that his time had come, and he was about to fulfill his mission to decide the fate of the world. And Shinji, his good friend who had always helped him and clearly wanted to give him a hand, would become his greatest obstacle.

"Is this your choice, Ayato?" A voice that sounded somewhat familiar, but seemed a little off, suddenly appeared behind Ayato. Ayato instinctively assumed a defensive fighting stance, and then heard the voice say with some praise, "Not bad, it seems you haven't neglected your skills during this time."

"Genkai... Master." Ayato Kamina looked at the person in front of him with surprise. It was a beautiful young girl. However, Ayato Kamina was not unfamiliar with girls like this, or rather, with his master. Yes, his master, Genkai. When Genkai was teaching Yusuke Urameshi and exerting her power, her highly active spiritual energy would briefly restore her youthful appearance. In other words, Genkai was ready to unleash her full power at this time. "Are you here to stop me too?"

"No, I just came to ask you if you're prepared to bear all of this? Shinji always thought you should be a fellow traveler with him, rebelling against the fate imposed upon you by this world, not a coward bowing to destiny." Genkai looked at the wary Ayato Kamina before him, a smile appearing on his face. Then, his spiritual power slowly dissipated, transforming him back into the elderly appearance that Ayato Kamina was most familiar with. "The journey here was a bit troublesome. Didn't you know that besides sending humans, the Babem Foundation also used various methods to hire all sorts of demons and monsters to capture or kill you?"

Ayato Kamina turned slightly to the side, glancing at the many demons who had been ambushed and killed in the distance, lying scattered on the ground. A bitter smile appeared on her face. "Looks like I've troubled you, Master." Then, Ayato Kamina turned back to look at Unit-01 in the sky, its wings outstretched as it shuttled back and forth among the Dorem's camp. A look of envy appeared on her face. "Master, fighting against the fate imposed on me by this world is too difficult. If this fate is in my favor, why shouldn't I? In my next life, in a world I can decide, there won't be so many painful things."

“Pain will still exist, it’s just that the pain of these demons and monsters has changed to another kind. Humans grow and survive through pain. The only thing to look at is that if you are just trapped in your memories, then you will not grow.” Genkai smiled and shook his head. “Shinji looks so strong and dazzling, but he has pain and regret that others do not have. All of this has made him who he is today.”

“Yes, I understand, but I’m not as strong as him. I can’t do it. I just want my girlfriend to be with me, is that not allowed?” Ayato Kamina took a deep breath, looking at Unit-01 who was charging back and forth in Dorem like a god, as if it were nothing. “In the end, fate chose me, but I don’t have the courage to fight back. Just like you said before, I’m not qualified, am I?”

"..." Huanhai fell silent. Practicing martial arts is not an easy thing. Many people can't even lose weight, yet they fantasize that they can become peerless masters just by meditating. What a joke! At Huanhai's level, every little bit of progress is almost risking one's life and requires the awareness of certain death.

While Ayato Kamina worked incredibly hard, he still lacked the unwavering, death-defying resolve of a true martial artist. Genkai had told Shinji Ikari from the beginning that she would teach him, but Ayato's potential was limited. If Shinji hadn't firmly believed that Ayato wouldn't be limited by so-called talent, Genkai truly wouldn't have intended to take him on as a disciple.

"So I am very pleased to see that you have exceeded my judgment of you. You, who were thought to have poor talent, have surpassed most martial artists in the world, haven't you?" Huanhai said with a smile. As a master, it is a joyful thing to see a disciple who was not originally very promising be able to exceed the limit of his judgment.

“Yes, yes, that’s right…” Ayato Kamina looked up at Unit-01 fighting in the sky, a struggle in his eyes, “Power gained with blood on his hands…” What did Ayato Kamina do during the time he was missing in North America? The Babem Foundation has put a bounty of one hundred million US dollars on Ayato Kamina’s head. Guess what he did with such a crazy price.

"So your choice..." Genkai looked up at the sky. Shinji Ikari, that brat, really did manage to showcase the word "power" to its fullest extent when piloting Unit-01.

"Master, do you think I still have a place to belong?" Ayato Kamina said calmly. "Yes, Shinji has already told me that the girl I used to like is in TERRA, but so what? Asahina... she's not here..." Perhaps because of Shinji Ikari's loose tongue, Ayato Kamina had developed great suspicions about Haruka Shito from the beginning. The rift between them always existed, and finally, because of Hiroko Asahina's death, the two drifted apart completely.