EVA: Shinji Ikari Returns from Tiga

Chapter 44 has nothing to do with gender! (3000 words, please read)
"Ikari Shinji, who... are you?"

Since Shinji Ikari chose to get to the point, Kaworu Nagisa will stop beating around the bush.

The smile on his face was restrained. This man who was as beautiful as a flower... For the first time, a solemn and dignified look appeared on his face... An indescribable feeling of oppression arose spontaneously.

A sharp light seemed to burst out from the red pupils... piercing sharply into Shinji Ikari's eyes, as if it wanted to see through everything about Shinji Ikari.

"Me? Ah... I didn't introduce myself today, did I?"

Shinji Ikari completely ignored Kaworu Nagisa's pressure and instead answered in the same light tone as Kaworu Nagisa.

"Ikari Shinji... the third qualified individual, the pilot of NERV Unit-01. Oh, yes... the son of NERV Commander-in-Chief Ikari Gendō... be careful or I'll file a complaint if you're rude to me."

Such a perfunctory answer made Nagisa Kaoru frown, and he did not hide his dissatisfaction.

"You should know...that's not what I want to ask."

"Is that so? But, before asking someone, it's basic etiquette to introduce yourself first, right? So, Kaworu Nagisa... who are you?"

Shinji Ikari calmly turned from defense to offense, looked directly into Kaworu Nagisa's eyes, and asked directly.

"... Kaworu Nagisa, the sixth qualified individual. The pilot of EVA Unit 04."

"See... you can only give the same answer to the same question. I even said one more thing than you did, about who my father is... you should also know... that's not what I want to ask."

Having understood what Shinji Ikari meant, Nagisa Kaworu's serious expression disappeared, returning to his previous soft and frivolous look.

"I'm sorry, Shinji-kun... It's just that for some reason - I can't tell you everything yet."

"…It's the same with you. I don't trust you at all."

"If you say that, I'll be sad."

As if realizing that mutual probing was pointless... the intelligence officer in the black suit appeared at the perfect time.

"Excuse me, I'm sorry to bother you. The Sixth Qualified Person—the Commander is gathering you all to get on the plane."

Seeing this, Shinji Ikari made a gesture to let him go, indicating that he had nothing more to say to him and that he should leave quickly.

"..."

But Nagisa Kaworu was unwilling to leave in such disgrace... He first turned around and greeted the intelligence personnel.

"Oh, here I come. I'll go now... I'm kidding you~!"

Then he suddenly turned around, ran to Shinji Ikari's side, bent down, and put his head close to Shinji Ikari's ear while he was sitting.

Shinji Ikari calmly watched everything in front of him. He knew that Kaworu Nagisa would not suddenly resort to such a crude method as hand-to-hand combat with him... He just watched quietly to see what tricks he was going to play.

"...In other words, next time—when I explain my identity to Shinji-kun...if I say something different than today, Shinji-kun will give me a different answer, right?"

"Who knows, maybe."

Of course, Shinji Ikari would not give him a definite answer here. If he likes to be a riddler, then just accompany him.

"Haha, then I'm really looking forward to it..."

“…! $#@%!!?”

Shinji Ikari shot up from his chair as if in a stress response.

His hand subconsciously pushed towards Nagisa Kaworu, but Nagisa Kaworu also knew that he would definitely be taught a lesson by Shinji Ikari, so the moment the sneak attack was successful, he jumped away with light steps.

This bastard, fuck...

Shinji Ikari looked at the back of Kaworu Nagisa who had already run away with great disgust.

This guy...is there really something wrong with him?

Once again, I predicted Shinji Ikari's inner thoughts. Even though his figure had disappeared around the corner of the corridor, Kaworu Nagisa's voice came from afar.

Next time we meet, I must teach him a lesson... otherwise this man will never learn his lesson... huh?

I sensed hurried footsteps... Judging from the rhythm and sound of the steps, I could tell their height and weight... They sounded familiar.

Hmm...it should be someone I know...

"Hey! Stupid Shinji! You're in there, right?!"

Now I know who it is without even looking... What lady would stand at the door of the men's restroom and yell at people inside?
“…What happened again?”

Shinji Ikari walked out with a frown, afraid that if he delayed for a few more minutes this crazy girl would break in.

"What are you waiting for? Stupid Shinji!"

Without giving Shinji Ikari any room to breathe, he just reached out and grabbed Shinji Ikari and started running.

"What the hell? What do you mean I'm delayed? I don't have to catch a plane to the Second Branch, so why would you ask me to go?"

"Stop talking nonsense! There's a call for you! Hurry up!"

"Huh!?" Asuka's words left Shinji Ikari completely stunned.

What did she say? There was a phone call?

This was a complete first. After all... the people who might call me were all inside the NERV base. But if they were inside the base, there was no need to call me.

For a moment, Shinji Ikari thought of his childhood... the uncle and aunt he lived with after being abandoned by his father.

How is it possible... He immediately shook his head in self-mockery and denied the idea.

Those two people... didn't have any family ties or feelings towards me... My departure was just a relief for them, and there was no way they would call me...

Asuka ran all the way to the intelligence department's landline phone, which was used to communicate with the outside world, and then she slowly revealed who she was calling.

"It was Xiaoguang calling. It seemed like... He was in a hurry to get on the plane before Ling had even finished talking... Xiaoguang was really worried, so..."

"Ah...that's it."

I felt relieved instantly. If it was really my uncle and aunt calling... I really don't know how to face it.

"Monitor."

I picked up the phone and heard Dong Muguang's anxious voice coming from the receiver.

"Ikari-san... I'm so sorry to bother you while you're working."

"It's okay. Suzuhara is already on the plane. I didn't expect him to be transferred to Matsushiro on his first day at NERV..."

Before Shinji Ikari could finish his greetings, he was interrupted impatiently by the squad leader.

"Ikari-san—will Suzuhara-san be in danger?"

"........."

Shinji Ikari fell silent for a moment... Logically, even if it was just to comfort her, he should have told her that there was no danger, but -

"Ah, we'll meet."

"—!"

Shinji Ikari confirmed without hesitation, causing the person on the other end of the line to gasp.

"Hey! Stupid Shinji!!"

Asuka hadn't expected Ikari Shinji to give such a positive answer. Wouldn't this only exacerbate Hikaru Tomokazu's anxiety?

"Why...are you expecting me to say nice things to fool her? If the monitor really just wanted to hear some soothing words like 'It's not dangerous' or 'Suzuhara will be fine'...you could have just said it yourself and left it at that. You didn't even need to call me—you specifically asked me to come and pick her up because you wanted me to tell you the truth, didn't you?"

Shinji Ikari smiled faintly, leaving Asuka speechless.

At the same time, it also broke the fantasy in Tomoki Hikaru's heart... She was indeed anxiously hoping that Shinji Ikari would deceive her to reassure her... But Shinji Ikari punctured her fantasy without hesitation.

"Don't live in this vain dream, squad leader—Suzuhara, relying on her own will, chose to fight on the front lines of protecting humanity... As a girlfriend, what you should do... is not to run away. Don't deceive yourself and ignore the danger... To do so would be an insult to the courage Suzuhara Touji displayed."

"...!"

Dong Mu Guang originally wanted to say something, but... this was an insult from Suzuhara Touji. This sentence was like a thunderbolt, deeply shaking Dong Mu Guang's heart.

As a girlfriend, as a lover... she naturally opposed her boyfriend, who could have stayed in a safe place, voluntarily throwing himself into danger... So in her heart, she actually felt resentful towards Shinji Ikari, or rather, towards the entire NERV, but...

"No one forced him, no one deceived him... Suzuhara Touji knew the dangers of this job, but he chose to face his fear and become a pilot. We don't care if you want to complain... but don't tarnish Suzuhara Touji's determination. This is my advice... not as an EVA pilot, but as Suzuhara Touji's friend."

"………………I understand… What you said makes a lot of sense… Thank you, Ikari-san…"

After a long silence, Dong Muguang hung up the phone——

Shinji Ikari knew that she needed time... time to face her own heart and to face the choice made by Suzuhara Touji.

Turning around, Asuka was stunned by what she heard. After a while, she expressed her sincere admiration.

"Shinji, you're really good at sweet talk! No wonder you're so good at making girls happy..."

"No, I just said the most obvious things......!?"

The sudden, almost unbearable shaking shook the entire NERV headquarters.

"careful!"

Shinji Ikari quickly caught Asuka who was about to fall, and helped her squat down... He nervously watched the lights flickering due to the shock wave and the collapsed filing cabinets.

"Earthquake!?"

"No, this is..."

"The Apostles are attacking——!!!"

(End of this chapter)