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

Chapter 286 The House of Ladies

"Wow... this is truly an astonishingly large adult room..." The moment Shinji Ikari opened the door to Misato Katsuragi's apartment, he had an instant urge to turn around and leave. To be fair, Misato Katsuragi's room was quite large, at least a standard three-bedroom, two-living room, one-kitchen, and one-bathroom apartment.

Judging from the visual inspection, the minimum area is close to 100 square meters. Based on Kaji Ryoji's visit, there seems to be a small living room with a TV, though it's also possible that Shinji Ikari slept there. So, in any case, before Shinji and Asuka moved in, Misato Katsuragi's house had plenty of usable space.

However, looking at the table piled high with untidy lunchboxes, and the floor littered with overturned bottles—aluminum, glass, all sorts of different types of alcohol—oh, and over there, a few pieces of underwear scattered on a beer bottle, Shinji Ikari was utterly speechless.

"Help me..." Shinji Ikari sighed, feeling that he could smell alcohol everywhere. "Find the trash bags, put all this trash in them, and then throw it downstairs," Shinji said irritably.

"Today doesn't seem to be a day for throwing out the trash. Won't you get fined if you litter?" Asuka said, somewhat puzzled.

"Shouldn't Misato Katsuragi be fined?" Shinji Ikari glared with dead fish eyes, completely annoyed. They came to discuss business, but not only was Misato not there, but when they opened the door, it was like the end of the world. It would be strange if Shinji Ikari was in a good mood. In an instant, Shinji Ikari, whose temper had exploded, decided to make Misato Katsuragi pay a price.

"You're right!" Asuka glanced at the scene before her, covered her face, and agreed with Shinji Ikari's opinion. With his good daily routine, he could easily take care of any minor cleaning up in the room. And most importantly, NERV had a cleaning service that cleaned his room twice a week, so it was unlikely that it would be dirty or messy.

The three of them neatly placed their bags at the door. Following Shinji's instructions, they went inside wearing their shoes, rummaged through the kitchen for a trash bag, and began cleaning up the garbage. It took them half an hour, going up and down three or four times, to finally clean up all the trash in the room.

"Phew... Finally, we have a place to stay!" Shinji Ikari wiped the grease off his chin. The floor was mopped, the kitchen counter was cleaned, and the washing machine was washing all sorts of clothes that Misato Katsuragi had left everywhere. By all accounts, the three of them had almost finished cleaning.

But Shinji Ikari glanced at Misato Katsuragi's room, then immediately chuckled and shut the door! Turning to Asuka, who was standing behind him giving him a strange look, he declared righteously, "It is impolite to casually enter the private room of an unmarried woman."

"Huh?" Asuka didn't believe it at all. She tilted her head and glanced at Shinji Ikari. After Shinji shrugged and left, she opened the door herself and took a look. "Uh... the lowest!" She slammed the door to Misato Katsuragi's room shut. Turning around, she saw Rei Ayanami peeking out of the bathroom and Shinji Ikari looking back at her. "Shinji is right! Entering the room of an unmarried woman is impolite."

“I’m glad we reached an agreement. Here’s some… ingredients. I can probably make some simple tea snacks. Is there anything you’d like to eat?” Shinji Ikari glanced at the chilled items: a whole carton of milk that hadn’t expired, flour that had been opened but was barely touched, and unopened butter and cream.

"Let's make some cookies for afternoon tea, I'm a little thirsty." Asuka took off her mask, looked back at the cleaned room, and suddenly felt a sense of accomplishment. "Not bad!"

"We might not have time for cookies, would you mind if we made small cakes?" Shinji Ikari glanced back, Rei Ayanami nodded slightly, and Asuka nodded in agreement.

An hour later, the oven was opened, and the sweet aroma of cream filled the room. Perhaps because tidying up the room had given her a workout, Asuka's stomach suddenly growled.

Shinji Ikari and his three friends sat down at the table and started drinking coffee and eating the cake Shinji had made himself. Suddenly, an alarm clock on the refrigerator went off! The three looked at the lower part of the refrigerator with puzzled expressions. A small door on top opened, and under their gaze, a penguin holding a bath towel walked out. It seemed to smell the aroma on the table, turned around and walked to Shinji's side, chirped twice, and then stood there.

"You bandit..." Shinji Ikari smiled helplessly. In the anime, this guy seems to be an omnivore and has even fought with another guy over food. So Shinji looked at the cake in his hand. Essentially, it was made of flour, milk, butter, and cream... It shouldn't kill him, right?

Shinji Ikari tore off a piece of food and threw it to the penguin in front of him. The penguin swallowed it in one gulp, smacked its beak twice, and then asked Shinji for more food. Shinji tore off another piece and fed it to the penguin.

"Why is there a penguin here?" Asuka was a little dazed. To be precise, both she and Rei Ayanami had a dazed look in their eyes. Asuka rested her chin on her hand, wanting to reach out and touch the penguin in front of her, but instead grabbed the beak that was trying to peck her.

"It seems to be called Pianpian. It must be Misato Katsuragi's pet? After all, this is Misato Katsuragi's house." Watching Pianpian wrestling fiercely with Asuka's hand, Shinji Ikari smiled and handed her a half-torn cake. Asuka took it, shook it at the penguin, and they instantly became best friends…

“Pianpian is a modified creature from the research institute I used to work at. I thought it was too lonely, so I decided to bring it home to raise. Its intelligence is indeed very high.” Katsuragi Misato, who had just taken off her shoes at the door, answered Asuka’s question naturally… Then, the moment she stepped into the house, Katsuragi Misato froze, subconsciously rubbed her eyes, and suddenly realized something, sticking out her tongue slightly.

"Um... I forgot to clean up after drinking yesterday! I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry!" Misato Katsuragi apologized to Shinji and the others with utmost sincerity, after all, she had really embarrassed herself! Shinji and the others had witnessed her embarrassing side completely.

"It's nothing, we just tidied up the living room. We didn't go into that lady's room," Asuka said, mimicking the tone Shinji Ikari and Misato Katsuragi used when they were bickering. "So let's get down to business."

"Okay, okay! Actually, I wasn't planning on having Rei come today, but Shinji Ikari insisted, so I don't care what happens!" Misato Katsuragi took a can of beer from the refrigerator and drank it all in one gulp. "Ha! I was thinking on the way home that I had to have a can when I got home and relax."

"..." Asuka looked at Misato Katsuragi taking a bite of the cake and said speechlessly, "Won't it taste a bit strange to have beer with cake?"

“That’s life. The sweet gets sweeter, and the bitter gets bitterer.” Katsuragi Misato, sitting down in the chair, gave me a look that said, “You inexperienced young people don’t understand.” She then took the laptop from Ikari Shinji, which was already plugged in. “Oh, thank you! Because I couldn’t easily copy a lot of information, I took pictures of it with my phone as Shinji suggested. Some of it is blurry…”

"Hmm, that's enough for us to watch." Asuka leaned closer to watch...

"Aren't you going to watch it?" Misato Katsuragi looked at Shinji Ikari, who seemed unmoved, and asked with some surprise, "We can't have a proper conversation without watching it at least once."

"It seems you've found some very valuable information?" Shinji Ikari scanned the text on the screen, quickly reading it. "Have you confirmed all of this information?"

"Most of what I discovered was... something that left me speechless. It seems they're preparing a plan to unify humanity." Misato Katsuragi glanced at Rei Ayanami beside her, apologetic smile on her face. As her investigation deepened, Misato realized that her previous findings were merely scratching the surface. The colossal entity SEELE, beginning to emerge behind NERV, sent chills down her spine.

The deeper her investigation went, the more suspicious she became of Rei Ayanami's identity. The First Child? No! It couldn't be as simple as just being the first suitable pilot for an EVA. Otherwise, deep underground at NERV, with Unit-00 experimental machines everywhere and... countless Rei Ayanami heads laid out like that, in a sense, Misato Katsuragi underwent a severe mental baptism that day and almost failed the assessment...

“Is it SEELE?” Shinji Ikari said with a smile. He followed Misato Katsuragi’s gaze, glanced at Rei Ayanami, and shook his head. “And it seems you know something about Rei.”

"You knew too?!" Looking at Shinji Ikari's smile, Misato Katsuragi was speechless. She thought she could put up a good fight with Shinji, but it seemed that this guy already knew all along.

“I do know…” Shinji Ikari’s eyes darted around slightly. Yes, it was probably a few lifetimes ago.

Chapter 287 Take care of yourself first

"You actually thought of having TERRA investigate SEELE?! Isn't that airing your dirty laundry in public?" Shinji Ikari simply revealed the answer, and a hard drive with the TERRA logo was connected to the computer. Misato Katsuragi stared at Shinji Ikari with a stunned expression.

"Don't look at me. Although there was a misunderstanding between me and Ms. Haruka Shito of TERRA at first, we quickly discovered some common topics. There are some things that are inconvenient for each other to do within our own systems, so we just handed them over to each other to do." Shinji Ikari's answer was that simple and straightforward.

"So, their target is Babem?" Misato Katsuragi guessed TERRA's target immediately. "It's really pathetic that both organizations have developed huge doubts about the supporting forces behind them, our SEELE, Babem..."

Misato Katsuragi took two big gulps of beer, then paused for a moment. "What did you find out? You can trust me with my word."

"The Babem has existed for a longer period than the total length of civilization currently known to humankind." Shinji Ikari sighed. As two systems that both aim to restart civilization, they do have some similarities. "Moreover, they have a massive army of clones... Ironically, the cloned individuals may simply be unaware of it themselves."

"Just hearing about it makes me want to complain." Misato Katsuragi sighed as she listened to Shinji Ikari's description. Every family has its own mess, and they really didn't have the energy to laugh at each other in this regard.

"Looking at document number 14, TERRA discovered that a secret spaceport has recently been established. Yes, you heard right, this damned world has a secret spaceport that has been sending large quantities of special metals here. With this, the Babem family has been completely mobilized over the SEELE sector. I think their sudden seizure of command and their cooperation with our actions during this Dark Tournament are partly due to this," Shinji Ikari explained simply.

"Oh? Your information exchange was done during the special training for Ayato Kamina, right?" Misato Katsuragi, Asuka, and Rei Ayanami looked at the information Shinji Ikari had taken out, glancing at Shinji with great interest.

“That’s basically right. After all, the intelligence department has been keeping a close eye on me lately, so I can’t just shake them off like before.” Shinji Ikari sighed. If he forcefully shook them off, it would easily arouse their suspicion. “Clearly, the Babem family’s attention has put a lot of pressure on SEELE.”

"They've managed to get off-field assistance very efficiently, and they're certainly very capable..." Katsuragi Misato felt a chill run down her spine as she looked at the documents Shinji Ikari had produced. The model number of this special steel had already been obtained by the capable TERRA intelligence department. Katsuragi Misato rolled her eyes at him. Their base had a lot of this steel, so much so that the engineering department used scraps to make weapons for Isayama Mei and Yusa Emi.

Yes, this type of steel is the same type used for the outer armor of EVA! There's a huge amount of it at NERV headquarters!

Moreover, according to the intelligence provided by TERRA, what's even more alarming is that TERRA intelligence counted the number of heavy-duty vehicles they observed transporting steel, and then estimated a rough number based on the standard load capacity of these vehicles. This number made Misato Katsuragi roll her eyes, roughly equivalent to 70% of the weight of the steel armor of Unit-01.

If we take into account the vehicles that TERRA's intelligence department did not count and the potential overloading issues, Misato Katsuragi feels that we can draw a simple and straightforward conclusion! Yes, consistent with the heading of the fifteenth report, "Preliminary Feasibility Assessment of NERV Agency Support Organization SEELE's Construction of EVA in Space".

Please don't forget that the American branch of NERV is greatly influenced by the Barbem family. Helena Barbem can even directly lead the launch plan for EVA Unit-05, although so far there is no sign of success for this plan.

Therefore, the Babem family was not completely ignorant about EVA! They even participated in the entire construction process of Units 3 and 4, which were manufactured in the United States. So, after seeing the material transportation report for this number, they almost immediately guessed that SEELE was up to something.

It's important to understand that in the previous agreement, all EVAs were toys for major powers. Only major powers were allowed to build EVAs, and the funding had to be approved by the United Nations Council!

In the TV version, Gendo Ikari even chatted with a special envoy from a certain Eastern power on the plane. The special envoy from the relevant department of the Eastern power said that they were building the No. 8 aircraft, which was undergoing testing, and the second maintenance plan was underway, but they had not yet found a pilot.

In a sense, SEELE's act of secretly building EVA behind the backs of major powers is a serious transgression of the red line!

It should be noted that Shinji Ikari single-handedly elevated the combat power of EVA to a terrifying level. Without exception, all countries capable of building EVA and having the right to build EVA units have classified EVA as a strategic weapon.

In a sense, SEELE's actions are like a UN agency secretly developing a nuclear warhead. The major powers might as well teach them a lesson in the different ways of writing "death" in various languages! Give them a enriching life experience so they'll be more careful in their next life!

“But I bet you’ll find out that the Barbem family isn’t clean either,” Misato Katsuragi said with a smile. Shinji Ikari’s wary attitude towards Helena Barbem on her first day already spoke volumes.

"Do we even need to investigate the Babem family? These bastards don't know what restraint is. That guy named Isshiki Makoto even tried to turn me against him. Good heavens, they really have no self-awareness at all." Shinji Ikari shook his head, with an expression that said, "You can underestimate me, but you can't treat me like a fool when the time comes." Asuka, who was standing next to him, suddenly laughed.

"Oh? I didn't know he wanted to turn you? What conditions did he offer?" Misato Katsuragi was taken aback. Shinji Ikari hadn't mentioned this before, which meant he was holding back.

“That day I was sunbathing on the deck. Because I had been lying down for a long time, I got up to move around and ran into that guy. He didn’t offer any conditions, he just asked me if I wanted to have real freedom. He was treating me like an idiot.” Shinji Ikari rolled his eyes and said, “I told him I have a resignation clause at NERV and he doesn’t need to worry about it.”

“Isshiki Makoto… he also said something to me that day.” Katsuragi Misato recalled her conversation with that guy. “He suggested that we completely control you, no matter what method we use!”

"That's really a good idea." Asuka was stunned. There was actually someone like that. Although Shinji Ikari wasn't as strong back then as he is now, he was still a formidable person. If he really wanted to escape, all he had to do was rush into the Himuro mansion. With NERV's combat power, he would be completely helpless.

"A foolish idea." Surprisingly, Rei Ayanami, who had been listening quietly the whole time, also spoke up, which was quite rare for her. Shinji Ikari and the other two looked at Rei Ayanami with some surprise, and then Rei Ayanami looked at them.

……quiet……

"Hahaha... Rei's assessment is accurate. This guy will inevitably crash and burn because of his own stupidity sooner or later." Misato Katsuragi laughed awkwardly, trying to smooth things over.

“Speaking of substitutes, Misato-nee, didn’t you also hire a substitute?” Shinji Ikari was looking through some documents that Misato Katsuragi had sent him at this moment, and then suddenly noticed one of them. “Is this Kaji Ryoji’s hand? Look, it doesn’t look like your hand at all. Don’t try to deny it.”

“Uh…” Misato Katsuragi stiffened for a moment. She hadn’t originally planned to drag Ryoji Kaji into this, but just as she was about to give herself away, he pinned her against the wall and kissed her, then pretended that the two of them were hiding away for some peace and quiet. The patrolling guards immediately put on an expression that said, “We understand, we didn’t see anything, we won’t say anything.”

Then she naturally joined Misato Katsuragi's side, and was very surprised by the information that Shinji Ikari had already collected.

"I hope the guys at TERRA won't be too desperate when they see your intelligence." Shinji Ikari presented a series of photos, as well as statistics from the public regarding the Babem Group's activities in recent years. Clearly, the Babem family's actions have accelerated dramatically recently. As for the reason, Shinji Ikari guessed that the other side had already figured out some of the true purpose of EVA, or at least had some guesses, unlike them, who were still guessing wildly without knowing anything, and those who knew couldn't explain it.

"Despair? What's there to despair about?" Shinji Ikari shook his head. Compared to what SEELE did in the later stages, the Babem family's behavior was much more respectable. Until the very end, they did not launch an attack on TERRA itself, which was relatively mild and did not resort to violent force.

"Let's take care of ourselves first. SEELE is building an EVA somewhere in space... What do you think it's for?" Asuka looked at the conclusion TERRA made at the end of their report, which basically confirmed that SEELE was building an EVA in space, but the exact location still needed to be observed.

"At a necessary moment, use it as a last resort, and once it's deployed in the battle, it will directly eliminate any extraneous elements outside the script."

"So Mr. Twig, you should take care of yourself first."

"..."

Chapter 288 The True Girl Who Fell From the Sky

"I really didn't expect Shinji to ask TERRA for help in gathering information." Despite the soft fragrance in his arms, their figures almost merging into one, Kaji Ryoji was actually discussing serious business with Katsuragi Misato…

"Hmm...yes, be gentle, it wasn't supposed to be like this!" Katsuragi Misato rolled her eyes at Kaji Ryoji, somewhat annoyed. "You were supposed to be faking it, but why are you acting like it's real?!" she thought. "And the intelligence I got is more valuable than you can imagine, hmm..."

Despite her annoyance, Misato Katsuragi casually slipped a USB drive into Ryoji Kaji's pocket. It contained the information they had discussed the previous night. "Alright, we have a meeting soon!" Misato patted Ryoji's arm decisively, signaling him to stop.

"Shinji did a great job! You did too!" Kaji Ryoji then pulled Misato Katsuragi into his arms with a forceful embrace. "I think we still have some time!" he said, his words carrying a double meaning.

"Hmm~" Misato Katsuragi had a half-smile on her face. Ryoji Kaji's face stiffened. That smile looked very dangerous. Then he suddenly felt a pain in the back of his foot.

Misato Katsuragi smiled and even wrapped her arms around his shoulders, but her feet continued to exert more force, the heels of her high heels spinning on Ryoji Kaji's feet. Unable to bear the pain, Ryoji Kaji could only release his hands and raise them to indicate his surrender.

"Damn it! Do you have to make Ritsuko laugh at you?!" Katsuragi Misato said irritably. She took out her makeup box, quickly glanced at it, and it seemed that the intimate moment just now hadn't left any obvious marks. Then she touched up her makeup a little. "Want to have dinner together tonight?"

"Where should we eat? The chef at Ristorante F hasn't come back yet. They're on the island, and it'll be at least another week. So how about we go for barbecue? Shinji's friend has a lot of influence over there and can get some special menu items." Kaji Ryoji quickly replied, first ruling out eating at Katsuragi Misato's house. After all, Katsuragi Misato's curry rice had left him with quite a psychological scar. Fortunately, as time went on, the two of them wouldn't have to go on dates at McDonald's like college students.

Of course, most college students probably can't afford to go to McDonald's in Tokyo Third City, since the daily price of a booth there is already around 50,000 yen. How could a normal student afford such a fast food meal? Even if they get two free coffees and some snacks, it's still a huge loss no matter how you look at it.

Of course, most people don't come here to eat. If you give them food, they'll just grab a bite. After all, there are only two regular employees left. So, cherish what you have.

"Barbecue? Hmm, let's invite Ritsuko too. It's a pity Shinji's got so much going on today, otherwise we should have invited him too." Misato Katsuragi thought for a moment, then agreed, deeming it a good idea. "See you tonight!"

"Okay, I'll go arrange it!" Kaji Ryoji gave Katsuragi Misato a salute, watched her disappear into the corridor, then took a closer look, pulled out a cell phone, and dialed a number. "I've got a powerful ally now, but it seems... they're out of contact right now!"

"Ah... Ah! Ah! Get out of the way! Get out of the way! Get out of the way!" A pretty young girl in a school uniform was descending from the sky in a paraglider, shouting loudly to the people below, urging them to get out of the way quickly. However, she was clearly not very skilled at operating a paraglider. With a sudden crosswind, she was already flustered enough just trying to land the paraglider, let alone in this situation.

On the rooftop, Shinji Ikari wasn't the only one eating. It was the last day of the three-day holiday, and Shinji, in a good mood, cooked some food and invited a group of his close friends from Class 3-4 to eat together. Of course, a certain delinquent teacher was also eating and bragging. Including Asuka and Rei Ayanami, there were probably more than ten people. Since Shinji usually cooks Chinese food, each dish was quite large, so three insulated food containers, plus freshly bought fried noodles and bread, were more than enough. It was all about the atmosphere.

And now, this group of people having dinner on the rooftop just stared blankly as the person in front of them descended with a parachute. Clearly, this beautiful girl had no idea there would be so many people on the school rooftop at this time! By the time she noticed, it was already too late!

"Is this my angel?!" Onizuka Eikichi looked at the bespectacled girl in mid-air, his eyes filled with the wisdom of time. His 24K alloy dog ​​eyes precisely scanned certain special parts of her body, and then, like a group of lecherous madmen, the corners of his mouth gradually curved into a wider and wider arc.

Then, Kanzaki Reimi, who had been warned by Shinji Ikari, took care of him...

"This is really a tricky time." Shinji Ikari stood up. He recognized who it was. Although he didn't quite understand why she had appeared so early, if he let her fall now, it wouldn't just be like the movie where Shinji was used as a human cushion. It would probably be a terrible home run, and everyone would be covered in all sorts of soup and broth in the chaos. Shinji didn't want that. Even if his clothes could be washed in a washing machine, it would still be unnecessary trouble.

In the next instant, Shinji Ikari leaped forward, heading straight for the girl who was screaming in mid-air. He then grabbed Mari, saying, "Take off your parachute, it'll make landing easier!"

"Are you sure?" Mari asked in English. After all, after Shinji Ikari exerted his power, their landing point was definitely not in the most open area on the rooftop. If nothing unexpected happened, the two would land on the relatively deserted playground, which was not just a few meters high, but at least five stories high.

"You're going to parachute here, there's no reason you wouldn't recognize me!" Shinji Ikari looked at Mari Makinami in front of him, and without waiting for her answer, he began to circulate his aura. An invisible gale began to swirl beneath Shinji's feet, and the descent speed of Shinji and Mari Makinami decreased dramatically, at a speed that would make the Archmage Newton rise from his coffin.

"Oh! What an amazing experience!" The girl's eyes lit up as she watched the parachute being re-erected by the strong wind. She immediately pulled the locking buckle on her parachute pack, and the parachute detached from her body under the strong wind. Shinji Ikari then picked up the bespectacled girl in a princess carry, bent his knees slightly, and the two landed smoothly and lightly.

Seeing this, Asuka pouted in dissatisfaction and let out a small snort. Rei Ayanami, who was next to her, looked at Asuka with a strange expression, seemingly curious as to why she would react this way.

"You're the most amazing person I've ever seen parachute in such a weird place. Next time, I know a few good bungee jumping spots." Shinji Ikari was slightly regretful. Why did he invite so many people to dinner today? Although it would be embarrassing if he were knocked over, he would definitely benefit from it! Hmm, keep a low profile, keep a low profile. He still needs to maintain his image as a star student.

"Oh! He really is a very nice guy!" Mari looked at Shinji Ikari with surprise. After all, seeing Yui's son surprised her somewhat. He was poised and seemed to have a lot of fun interacting with girls! Although there was nothing wrong with Yui's genes, the gloomy Gendo Ikari didn't seem to have such strong social skills.

"Wow, amazing! Will the Eternal Emperor in the next movie use a move like that?" Murai Kunio said with envy. To be honest, in their minds, exorcists, especially with Shinji Ikari as such a clearly flawed role model, made them feel like they were omnipotent.

"No, the supervisor will kill me." Shinji Ikari shook his head. As a Kamen Rider, after the show airs, he will inevitably be imitated by enthusiastic fans, especially young children whose ability to distinguish is not very strong. Therefore, the "jumping off a building" followed by the "hero landing" action that often appears in the manga is not allowed in most cases. If an imitation of the fall occurs, it would not be surprising if the popular character of Eternal Emperor were to die instantly.

Therefore, all similar methods are strictly prohibited. However, as Shinji Ikari's strength improves, the tricks he can pull off are far more than just this one, so Shinji Ikari is not so worried at all.

"I'll pack up the parachute in a bit. You probably can't stay here any longer, right?" Shinji Ikari looked at the girl in front of him, a smile playing on his lips. Mari, in a sense, was a girl entrusted to him by his mother. She was the new character added to the movie, a girl shrouded in mystery. It was said that her true form was Gendo Ikari and Yui Ikari's... junior! Unbelievable!

However, considering the widespread use of cloning technology in the theatrical version, and the special curse of time mentioned in the film due to her connection with EVA, we can deduce two ways this situation can be achieved: 1. The Mari Makinami in front of us is a clone who has undergone memory implantation. 2. Mari Makinami was the first person cursed by EVA, and may have participated in the special experiment organized by Yui Ikari.

"Oh! The Woof-kun with the good taste is such a considerate person!" Mami said with a smile, then took out her phone from her small bag and started contacting someone.

"Tch! He was clearly saved by that idiot Shinji, but he didn't even say thank you!" Asuka said, dissatisfied. The moment the words left her mouth, Asuka herself felt somewhat puzzled. What was wrong with her? Why was she taking the side of this guy in front of her?!

"Oh! Wangda-kun has someone protecting him now, someone's jealous~" He leaned close to Shinji's ear and whispered in a very intimate tone. This was clearly a provocation of Asuka Shinichi; anyone with eyes that weren't deaf could tell it was intentional.

This time, it wasn't just Asuka who was annoyed; even Rei Ayanami, who was tidying up her things nearby, looked over, her eyes clearly showing her displeasure. However, the two glanced at Shinji Ikari, who didn't know what to say. He rolled his eyes repeatedly, wondering if he'd been teased. Was this karma for constantly flirting with Ryoko Sakaki and occasionally teasing Mei Isayama?!

"Oh! How scary! How frightening! Don't look so pale!" Mari, still trying to be mischievous, patted her chest, showing off her voluptuous figure to the group of guys who were practically drooling, before turning and running away. However, after a few steps, she turned back to Shinji Ikari and said, "Wan-da-kun, don't forget our promise~ Next time we meet, we have to get really close~" After saying that, she blew a kiss to Shinji Ikari and then ran off.

Asuka glared at Shinji Ikari with a terrifying look. If her gaze had any power, Shinji would feel like he'd been riddled with holes by an MG42, his entire body radiating murderous intent. Shinji was completely bewildered. "Why are you glaring at me? You're not my girlfriend!"

"Hmph!" Asuka turned her head and snorted coldly, expressing her anger. There was no need to ask, Shinji Ikari in front of her was definitely bewitched by this damned fox, just like the group of idiots next to him, especially like that perverted teacher who was being stomped on by Reimi Kanzaki.

"Indecent!" Rei Ayanami shook her head. She didn't really like the girl in front of her, even though she felt that Ryoko Sakaki was much better.

Shinji Ikari took out his phone, typed a message, then stuffed it back into his pocket and went to clean up the mess. Although the NERV intelligence department wouldn't enter St. Forest Academy, they couldn't possibly miss such a large person descending from the sky in a paraglider. However, if Shinji remembered correctly, the girl in front of him might have higher clearance than Ritsuko Akagi. Even if the intelligence department wanted to investigate, they'd probably have a hard time finding out.

Mari Makinami is a ruthless person who can directly unseal Unit-2, even when it's in a sealed state...

"She's one of Kaji Ryoji's people?" Asuka glanced at Shinji Ikari suspiciously. Shinji's text message was short: "She's on the phone with Kaji Ryoji." This explained why Shinji had volunteered to pack the parachutes; the girl was practically one of their people.

"Let's go! Let's go together! I want to see what this woman is up to!"

"Ouch! It's so sour! Shinji, how much vinegar did you put in?!"

"If you dare utter another word, I'll kill you today! Murai Kunio!"

"Whoa! Asuka's gone berserk! Shinji, save me!"