Chapter 55 87: The Dead Sea Scrolls.

'How is this kid even bulkier than me? Even hitting the iron every day shouldn't result in this.'

Ryoji Kaji felt even more surprised seeing the youth than he usually did. With those sharply defined muscles and bulging eight-pack abs, the boy looked like an ancient Greek statue—unbelievably strong. Furthermore, he didn't possess the typical shyness a normal teenager would have when being stared at; it was as if he enjoyed showcasing his physique.

The towel was just held in his hand, leaving his entire body in full view.

Of course, Kaji wasn't interested in men; he was interested in a different aspect.

The relationship between Shinji Ikari and Gendo Ikari wasn't some reconciliation between father and son. It looked much more like Gendo was being held hostage by Shinji, forced to cooperate while pinching his nose in frustration.

This was fascinating. No one knew better than Kaji what kind of man Gendo Ikari was; he was extremely capable and cold-blooded, someone who wouldn't care one bit about paternal affection.

Digging deeper into this lead, Kaji had found more and more interesting details.

As a genius-level spy, he had already devised a plan on his way here. The first step was a probe to determine if the situation was as bad as he imagined.

Thus, he opened with a direct strike and saw the shock in Shinji's eyes. But before he could follow up with the second step, the surprise in those eyes vanished. The boy stepped into the pool and walked toward him with a blank expression.

'Huh? This isn't according to the script.'

Kaji blinked. In a normal scenario, the boy should have said, "How do you know?" in shock, and then Kaji, playing the role of a supportive older brother, would analyze it for him.

What was with this silent, imposing approach?

"Whoa, whoa, Shinji-kun. You're looking a bit scary. Let's sit down and chat slowly."

There was no answer, only the sound of splashing water. As the boy strode closer, Kaji began to sweat profusely; it felt as though a ruthless assassin was closing in.

"Don't underestimate adults, okay? I didn't come here to get rough with you. Asuka and the others are right next door; you wouldn't want to alert them, would you?"

Kaji stood up as he saw the boy flatten his hand like a blade, slicing through the misty surface of the water like a literal knife. His intuition screamed in a frantic warning—even during his narrow escapes under SEELE's nose, he had never felt a sensation this intense.

'Resistance means death? Just how many people has he killed?'

His expression turned to one of horror. Seeing the boy stop, his muscles coiled like a leopard's, Kaji spoke hurriedly.

"Those people like Mark—their identities aren't simple! Whatever you do, don't be fooled by them!"

Bang—

The hot spring water exploded. The hand-blade stopped right at his throat. Though there was no contact, the skin had already split open, and a trickle of fresh blood was flowing from the wound.

Ryoji Kaji was stunned on the spot. What was this? Had the sci-fi world turned into a Wuxia novel? If he hadn't stopped, could he have pierced right through me with just one hand?

Gulp.

Kaji swallowed hard, feeling goosebumps all over his skin as he met the boy's cold gaze.

'Yes. He could have.'

"Next time, don't stop halfway when you're speaking. It's easy to lose your life in a state of confusion that way."

Shinji looked at him. He knew Kaji wanted to throw out a topic to intimidate him, but without that final clarification, the man would already be dead.

He would have spent ten minutes cleaning up the body and the scene, then another ten minutes giving the security department orders to handle the aftermath. But now it seemed Kaji had completely misunderstood the situation, which made his stance very interesting.

"Uh... I understand."

Kaji nodded with difficulty. He was confused as to why there was no reaction from the other side of the bamboo wall despite such a loud commotion. He could still clearly hear Asuka's singing.

"If I wanted to kill you, they wouldn't know. The cleanup would be a bit of a hassle, but no one would investigate the matter."

Shinji lowered his hand, took half a step back, and leaned against another rock. He gestured with his chin.

"Sit. I was planning to look for you anyway. Since you came to me, it saves time."

'This isn't right. How did I fall into his rhythm?'

Kaji's eyes twitched. He hadn't expected that after crossing the line between life and death countless times, he would trip up in a "small gutter" like this. He swore to heaven he had never underestimated Shinji; he had specifically chosen a time when Asuka and Rei were "present,"

thinking that even if the talk went south, the kid would be wary of those two and wouldn't drop all pretenses.

He never imagined Shinji would go straight for the kill. Even weirder, no one noticed. What was this like?

'I overestimated you as a fierce dog, but it turns out you're a Tyrannosaurus Rex. No matter how I calculated, it was an underestimation.'

"So, what does Shinji-kun want to chat about?"

"Not a chat. I have questions."

"And if I can't answer them?"

"I will represent the Inquisition and sentence you to death."

'Nope. I still need to find a chance to slip away.'

Being stared at by those eyes made Kaji feel uncomfortable all over. But then he thought about it and suddenly realized something.

'Wait, what am I afraid of? I never intended to harm him from the start. Didn't I come here at great personal risk just to warn a talented person who protects humanity from falling into the filthy struggles of adults?'

Recalling his reason for coming, he immediately steadied himself.

"Don't use such a scary look. I have no intention of harming you; I only came to give you a warning."

"I know. Otherwise, you'd be dead already. Shall I finish your thought for you?"

Shinji leaned forward, fingers interlaced. "No matter how strong a pilot is, they are fragile outside of an EVA. No matter how mature a boy is, he's still just a boy. You saw my value and worried I'd fall into trouble, so you took a huge risk to test and warn me. Is that right?"

Kaji was flabbergasted. After several seconds, he gave a bitter smile.

"It seems there was no need for that."

The connection between Shinji and Mark's group was well-hidden, but it couldn't escape Kaji's notice. However, a normal person would never imagine that Shinji was the master; they would only think the boy was being manipulated by those old men. At least from his looks, Shinji Ikari seemed very easy to deceive.

"So, first question: how did you find out?"

Having established the atmosphere for the conversation, Kaji actually relaxed and explained the whole process in a somewhat showy tone.

He had found discrepancies in the files from that kidnapping incident. Then, by contacting HQ staff, he learned that Shinji and Mark went to see Gendo together. Logically speaking, it was all a script.

"That kidnapping was a self-staged play. Those old men wouldn't feel safe unless they had a talent like you in their own hands. I also saw that Commander Ikari was very tense, so I tentatively confirmed they had recruited you.

Then I used a small trick, intentionally exposing some flaws for them to catch. If it was as I imagined, the Security Department would definitely have you stay on guard against me. And in fact, that's exactly what happened."

'Meticulous mind. A real talent.'

Shinji nodded. The opening directness had already given Kaji his answer—that Mark had informed him—it was just that Shinji's reaction was beyond expectations.

"You think SEELE recruited me?"

"You even know about SEELE?"

Kaji wasn't too surprised. He answered with a smile: "What else? I studied you carefully. Sometimes I wonder who exactly is the Commander of NERV. Like this time, changing the mission objectives—Commander Ikari didn't even dare to utter a peep."

This subversion of hierarchy was incomprehensible to outsiders. The fact that Shinji dared to lead the operation undoubtedly meant he had authorization from a higher level. Looking at Gendo Ikari's attitude, he looked like a bullied little wife.

SEELE fooled Shinji to check and balance Commander Ikari, who was already under suspicion. That was his logic. However, the boy's attitude made him suspicious again—why did he look like he knew everything?

'I see.'

Shinji understood. This fit a normal person's logic—overcomplicating simple problems, thinking there was some bizarre conspiracy inside. In reality, it wasn't that complex; it was just that he had crushed the minds of those sent against him and turned them into puppets with psychic power.

Of course, since there wasn't a second psyker in the world, they wouldn't think of "superpowers."

"Shinji-kun, SEELE can provide you with many conveniences, freeing you from Commander Ikari's constraints and even making Dr. Akagi's team submit. But these people have impure motives; you must be careful."

Kaji became serious and decided to lay everything out.

"If I were truly on SEELE's side, what you're doing would be walking into a trap. Even if I didn't act myself, a single phone call to the Security Department would mean your certain death."

Shinji half-closed his eyes. This man had obtained his answer at the very beginning and had surrendered his fate.

Kaji's expression changed slightly.

He didn't look particularly holy; he was filled with a bit of fear and a touch of regret. He took a deep breath.

"I didn't originally plan to take this kind of risk. But Shinji-kun, you are truly important. If I can make you wary of SEELE, then it's fine even if I die.

Compared to the future of humanity, my life is insignificant."

'Such loyalty.'

Shinji's expression softened. His psychic power, like an invisible hand, touched the unseen emotions, confirming with precision beyond any instrument that these were Kaji's true thoughts. It was at this moment that he abandoned the idea of turning him into a puppet.

"Fine. I'll also correct one error of yours: SEELE has never controlled me. Every decision I make is based on my own judgment."

"That's impossible. Without SEELE's orders, how could the Security Department cooperate? Wait... I see. You're playing along?"

Kaji's eyes lit up. It seemed the boy had been wary all along—agreeing verbally while utilizing them, right?

'It's not that much trouble.'

Shinji nodded and didn't explain. Psychic power was his greatest trump card; even if he trusted the other party, he wouldn't be stupid enough to blurt it out.

"I see. Then I underestimated your courage and wisdom. Playing games with them is like walking a tightrope."

The man nodded with a sigh of admiration, then asked in confusion: "Then why does Commander Ikari look like such a pushover?"

"Commander Ikari? I just had a nice heart-to-heart talk with him. He's already suspected by SEELE, so of course he has to keep a low profile."

Shinji revealed a subtle, mysterious smile. Yes, a "heart-to-heart" where he held the man up high and threatened his life.

'Just like that? That man just resigned himself to it?'

Kaji didn't quite believe it, but looking back on this period, Gendo Ikari had been having a streak of terrible luck. He even got beaten up by Unit-01 during an experiment and was still wrapped in bandages.

Before, seeing him sit silently felt like heavy pressure. Now, looking at him, it felt somewhat farce-like.

"Commander Ikari won't give up so easily. His goals are a bit different from SEELE's. As for what exactly he plans to do, SEELE asked me to investigate, but I haven't found it yet."

Since they had talked this far, there was no need for him to hide his identity as a double agent.

"So, what is SEELE's goal?"

Shinji asked intently. Seeing Kaji hesitate, he frowned slightly: "Didn't you risk your life to come and warn me? Then say it directly. No riddles."

'That's true.'

Kaji thought about it. If the other party were still on SEELE's side, it would be a dead end whether he spoke or not. At least for now, this boy was smarter than imagined and had long been on guard.

"I'm not yet clear on what they specifically intend to do. But I can guarantee it's not just about destroying the Angels. Because they hold a script in their hands, and I've seen part of the blueprint."

"What script?"

Shinji became extremely focused. These were questions he had originally intended to dig out of Gendo Ikari's mouth after completely controlling him. He hadn't expected a pleasant surprise today.

Kaji looked around cautiously and lowered his voice.

"Its name is... the Dead Sea Scrolls."

In the original work, Ryoji Kaji went to great lengths to figure everything out and tried his best to hand it over to Misato Katsuragi. But in the end, it was a failure; it still couldn't stop the Human Instrumentality Project.

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