Chapter 120 152: The New Year Festival.

"I just happened to find this idiot and was about to call you. He doesn't deserve the brainpower it takes to keep him all to oneself."

"You're too much! We agreed everyone would split up to find him, and you dared to tail me? What? My 'dog nose' is sharp? Who are you calling a dog!"

"Scheiße, I'm sneaking off, what are you going to do about it? (German)"

Shinji walked in the front, clearing a path, while Asuka's voice trailed behind him, busy salvaging her dignity. Following "German Winning Studies," saving face was also part of her instinct. How embarrassing to be caught sneaking off; she might as well just redefine what "sneaking off" meant.

There were many people on the road. As a rising fortress city, Tokyo-3 was mostly populated by young men and women. Whenever these people saw something lively, they would squeeze in without a second thought, filling the air with a sense of youthful energy.

But this was humanity—base yet noble, cruel yet merciful. The Emperor deeply loved such contradictory individuals.

Shinji looked left and right. From the perspective of contradictory individuals, the humans of this world were no different from those of 40K. This was precisely why he opposed the Human Instrumentality Project. Even the Emperor didn't redefine humanity; how could a bunch of decaying mortals be worthy of the task?

"Ikari-kun, Mt. Futago has a secret entrance. If an Angel attacks, we can deploy very quickly."

Rei spoke in a low voice, completely ignoring Asuka's rambling attempts to save face.

"I'm not worried about the Angels. Forget it, let's focus on what's in front of us."

Shinji ended his contemplation and took a good look at Rei. She also wore light makeup, and her outfit was similar to what he had seen that other day.

With moon-rabbit patterns, her icy-blue long hair, and a golden hairpin, she appeared cold and ethereal—quite unlike the vibrant Asuka. Unfortunately, before he could fully appreciate the view, Asuka performed a massive leap, landing right in front of Rei.

"That's more like it. Though I hate to admit it, whether it's the school festival or this New Year festival, they're only happening because of you. Otherwise, if the Angels broke into the city and left it in ruins, no one would be in the mood."

"Hmm, put that way, it's true, but I did it to preserve this fortress city."

"Whatever you think, the result is good. So, Master Shinji, just enjoy yourself; this is your achievement."

Asuka wagged her finger, quoting "loyalty scriptures" on the spot: "A hero deserves to enjoy glory—you said that too."

'True. Consider it a byproduct of battle.'

Shinji glanced at the dense crowd, eyes full of laughter. A few children ran past them, their crisp laughter ringing out.

'Emperor on high, Your grace allows me to enjoy the peace that follows protection.'

His gaze suddenly softened. The Astartes had saved countless planets and guarded untold numbers of Imperial citizens with their blood, but they never had the chance to enjoy post-war tranquility.

On one hand, any place that needed the Astartes was a meat grinder; victory only left behind seas of blood and ruins. On the other hand, as "firefighters," the Astartes usually departed as soon as the situation was settled to head for the next fire. Perhaps catching a glimpse of the Imperial Aquila flying high while returning to the mothership was their greatest consolation.

"It feels good to taste the fruits of victory."

"Right? Isn't this exactly what we fight for? Come on, give this lady a smile. That's it—be a bit more unrestrained."

"Don't push your luck."

Rei didn't fight for position; she just watched quietly. Some things were better handled by Asuka's personality—just as Rei knew Shinji was currently mired in difficult problems but didn't know how to help him navigate them.

But seeing Asuka hogging all the spotlight with her chatter, Rei couldn't help but quicken her pace.

"Speaking of battle byproducts, Mt. Futago is the same."

There was a reason the New Year festival was held at Mt. Futago. Besides the view of Lake Ashi, it was because NERV had completely reconstructed the area after the battle against the Fifth Angel, Ramiel.

"Yeah, the main venue is the shooting platform used for Unit-00 back then. That area is quite large."

Shinji looked up, watching the crowds head for the summit. The shooting platform built for Unit-00 had become a plaza. He looked to the right.

"Hey, is that the giant crater blasted out by the Fifth Angel? It's already overgrown with grass."

There was indeed a massive crater on the mountainside, a mark left by the exchange of fire between Unit-00 and the Angel.

"Yes. During the first shot, the two positron beams deflected due to particle entanglement."

"I remember the second shot hit you."

"Yes. It pierced the protective armor in seconds. If you hadn't descended from the sky, Ikari-kun, I expect I would be dead."

"No, no, no, you didn't even need to fire that second shot; it was only to protect me."

'These two are so annoying!'

Asuka couldn't get a word in edgewise. She was still in Germany during the Fifth Angel incident. Rei's "this is our exclusive memory" expression made her grit her teeth in frustration.

Had she known, she would have come two months earlier—no, before the Third Angel. She heard that back then, this woman really was just a doll who couldn't even speak properly.

At this moment, Asuka completely forgot who it was that previously said they shouldn't have come to Japan. She looked up and saw Kensuke and the others waiting on the stairs ahead, so she quickly shoved the two in front of her.

"Stop reminiscing and get up there!"

She grabbed one in each hand and ran upward, preventing Shinji and Rei from dwelling on the past. But after dragging two people halfway up the mountain, Asuka leaned against her knees, panting heavily.

"Are you okay, Asuka? Why did you run so fast?"

Chiharu Rin handed her a cup of water. Seeing Asuka's wary expression, Chiharu scratched her cheek. "Is there something weird on my face?"

"When are you planning to find a boyfriend?"

"Huh? What kind of inexplicable question is that?"

'Hmm? Did I guess wrong?'

Asuka looked at her suspiciously before finally straightening her back. "Alright, where do we start playing today?"

"Let's go to the shrine to make a wish first. I heard there's an open space behind it displaying some equipment damaged during the fight against the Fifth Angel."

Kensuke adjusted his glasses; as a military otaku, his goal was clear. He looked at Shinji.

"Uh, why are you still wearing your school uniform?"

Shinji looked around. Boys and girls were all in yukatas, while he was in his eternal, unchanging outfit. He immediately looked at Asuka.

"Is this what you meant by the most ritualistic, most magnificent clothing?"

"Isn't it? The Class Rep told me it's common sense to wear a yukata to a festival."

'My common sense is that the most ritualistic equipment is Power Armor—specifically Power Armor fully decked out with various medals of honor. I got excited for nothing.'

Shinji originally thought he'd have the chance to show off his loyal full-gear, but it turned out to be this?

"Alright, let's go to the shrine. What New Year wishes is everyone preparing?"

"Don't ask, Maya! If you say it out loud, it won't come true."

"Could it be that you want to stop being single?"

"Oh, shut up!"

The group chattered as they walked toward the mountainside. There stood a shrine that had existed since the Hakone era; being on the reverse side of the mountain, it hadn't been vaporized by the Angel's beam.

Of course, it was impossible for Shinji to go inside. The fact that he didn't tear down the temple of a false god was proof he was in a good mood. Seeing him stay out, the loyal Toji and Kensuke stayed out too, forcing the girls to go in feeling slighted, muttering "disloyal" things under their breath.

One could say the boys of Class 2-A were made manly by Shinji's influence, but similarly, their logic was often eccentric because of him.

"Russian-made, T-80U Main Battle Tank! 125mm smoothbore gun! The gas turbine can provide up to 1600 horsepower!"

Kensuke's eyes shone as he saw the scrapped equipment in the clearing, rambling through an introduction. Clearly, this scrap metal was far more attractive than praying to a god.

Shinji also glanced at the blackened "frying pan" turret tank. The weapon was primitive, but it was indeed more appealing than praying to some false deity.

"Russian-made? Why is it here?"

"Probably shipped in by the UN. Remember the Sixth Angel, Gaghiel? There were SU-33s on the American carrier; those are Russian equipment too."

"Resource integration?"

"Yeah. Since Tokyo-3 is the only place humanity needs to defend, they mobilized troops from many other countries. It would be too much trouble to ship this tank back for repairs, so they just left it here."

Shinji touched the cold steel, quietly soothing its machine spirit. Turning his head, he saw the girls coming out.

"Better to pray to the Emperor than to some false god. I have His icon in my room."

"None of your business! That Emperor of yours doesn't look like he'd listen to my secrets."

Asuka made a face, though subconsciously she already believed the Emperor truly existed—which, of course, meant she couldn't tell Him her private thoughts.

Shinji frowned but didn't bother her. He wasn't an Inquisitor and had no intention of forcibly correcting these people's beliefs.

"Where next?"

"The flea market! We've spent a lot of money lately; let's see if we can find some good stuff."

Asuka said this while pulling Shinji along. Rei hesitated for a moment, then grabbed his other hand.

As if trying to vent all the fear of the Angels, the Tokyo-3 New Year festival was quite lively. Further up was another flat area—the very spot where the transformer bank had been placed. Now, it was filled with small stalls.

Citizens had brought out clothes they no longer used, home appliances, and various trinkets. There was a bit of everything as far as the eye could see. People wandered through, buying goods at a fraction of their usual price.

Shinji actually liked this atmosphere. After all, the Blood Ravens preferred using second-hand gear, later forming the philosophy that the older something was, the better. Instead of having the Mechanicus produce a new Power Sword, they preferred to "acquire" one from the battlefield.

"What is this thing?"

Shinji walked to a stall specializing in old toys and picked up a strange object.

"A yo-yo!"

Toji snatched it away, the sphere flying up and down the string. He looked at the three wide-eyed pilots. "No way... you guys don't know what this is?"

Shinji, Rei, and Asuka looked at each other. They really didn't.

"And this?"

"A bamboo dragonfly (bamboo-copter)! Give it a rub with your palms and it flies into the sky."

Rei gave it a light rub, and sure enough, the toy in her hand soared into the air. She tilted her head back, her red eyes full of light.

"Ikari-kun, it's magical."

"Mm. It aligns with humanity's early explorations of aerodynamics."

"It's not that I didn't know! It's just that Germany doesn't have such primitive toys."

The others stared at them with faces full of bewilderment. These three were like travelers from another world—is a bamboo dragonfly really worth such amazement?

Though they didn't know the details, the childhoods of these three seemed to have been very difficult indeed.

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