Misato Katsuragi tried her best to keep her expression calm, but inside her heart was burning with anxiety. She knew that time was running out.
And yet, the more dangerous the moment, the less she could afford to show panic—otherwise, fear would ripple through the crowd like wildfire.
After hearing Misato's command, everyone nodded. At this point, they had no other choice. They could only obey. After all, they were nothing more than lambs waiting for slaughter, fish laid out on a cutting board—without a shred of control over their fate.
One by one, they filed in, entering the hastily-dug air-raid shelter to hide.
On the surface, only Ryōta Kitazawa remained.
He drew in a deep breath and looked into the distance. He could already feel it—an overwhelming force of enemies was rushing toward him.
The momentum of their approach left no doubt. Ryōta understood: this time he was facing a true life-or-death battle.
Were they determined to eradicate him at any cost?
Or was it those behind him they sought? Those survivors—once the very technical backbone of NERV.
Sure enough, less than half a minute later, the horizon darkened as swarms upon swarms of enemies appeared.
Wave after wave of EVAs came streaking toward Ryōta in a frenzy. And judging from the endless numbers still pouring from the skies… there had to be tens of thousands.
Tens of thousands of EVAs. What kind of concept was that?!
The people inside the air-raid shelter were dumbstruck.
Never in their lives had they seen such numbers. They couldn't even imagine when or how NERV had built so many EVAs.
To manufacture a force of that magnitude would demand manpower and resources beyond imagination.
How had Gendō Ikari managed it?
No one could understand—not even Misato. But she had no time to think about it. The battle had already begun.
The clash started the instant the EVA swarm arrived. Without hesitation, they charged straight at Ryōta Kitazawa. There was no delay, no wasted movement—the fight ignited at once.
Countless EVAs rained bombardment after bombardment down on Ryōta, who darted left and right, sprinting toward Unit-01.
He had endured six months of divine lightning within the War God System's space. Such a barrage, even as endless firepower poured down from the skies, could not overwhelm him.
When the first wave of blasts failed to hit, Unit-01 leapt skyward, its legs surging with power, rocketing into the heavens.
In an instant, its progressive dagger was drawn. With lightning speed, Ryōta drove the blade into the swarm of EVAs above.
His speed was incredible. Some EVAs, caught off guard, were immediately sliced apart, spewing fire and smoke as they fell. Others swarmed up to engage, rushing Unit-01 all at once.
The sky itself seemed to blacken with EVAs converging on Unit-01. The scene was terrifying—
like moths hurling themselves into flame, charging forward in a mass suicide assault. Their sole purpose: the utter destruction of Unit-01.
Or more precisely—the annihilation of its pilot, Ryōta Kitazawa.
It was clear: to kill him, they would stop at nothing.
Misato's hands clenched tightly. Asuka's jaw was locked, her teeth grinding. Everyone's eyes were fixed on the clouds of smoke above. Could Ryōta possibly survive this attack?
The scale of this assault far surpassed even the Mark.12. It was a suicide strike—an attack with absolutely no regard for cost.
If Ryōta were to die here… the consequences would be unthinkable. They all knew what that would mean: every last one of them would die as well. And Gendō Ikari's plan would be fulfilled.
No wonder every single one of them was tense—though aside from Misato and Asuka, most were only concerned for themselves.
Of course, in the world as it now was, even if they did survive, without Ryōta Kitazawa, their chances of lasting long were slim.
And then—something wholly unexpected happened.
As the smoke cleared, Unit-01 emerged—its entire form enveloped in a glowing barrier of light, deflecting the storm of progressive daggers hurled against it.
Then Unit-01 moved, dagger in hand, plunging into the midst of the EVA swarm.
The blade whirled like a storm. Countless EVAs were cleaved apart, explosions booming one after another. Yet still, wave upon wave of EVAs surged forward, heedless of the cost.
They were nothing but soulless husks, machines of war bound to programming.
And in that moment, one thought rose unbidden in every observer's mind: In the end, how are these any different from the Angels?
There was no time to dwell on it. For at that instant, as though following some unseen order, the mass of EVAs suddenly scattered and fled.
Seeing this, Misato's heart sank. An unease gripped her.
For Gendō Ikari to deploy tens of thousands of EVAs, showing such clear intent to kill Ryōta Kitazawa even at staggering cost—would he simply retreat now? Misato knew Gendō well enough to doubt it.
Cold. Merciless. Once he committed to an operation, he never withdrew.
There had to be some greater plan still waiting.
Her fear proved true.
For just as the EVAs dispersed, a terrible sight followed. From the sky descended a massive bomb, trailing fire as it fell.
Its size alone made its destructive power clear.
And Misato recognized it instantly. The moment she did, her face finally betrayed panic.
"No! Everyone, down—now!!"
Her scream rang out as the bomb slammed into the earth.
In the next instant, a monstrous surge of energy erupted across the horizon.
Power vast enough to tear the heavens and annihilate the earth itself.
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