Chapter Summaries

Ritsuko Akagi told Shinji Ikari that his body was aging unusually slowly and warned him to keep the medical findings secret. Meanwhile, Gendo Ikari reaffirmed his plans for Shinji and Rei, while Asuka and Mari reacted to news of Shinji’s latest Angel victory.

• Ritsuko Akagi concluded that Shinji Ikari’s body showed unusually little aging and warned him not to disclose the classified results.
• Kozo Fuyutsuki questioned Gendo Ikari about the cruel plans for the Children, but Gendo ordered Shinji to spend more time with Rei and said the plan remained unchanged.
• NERV branches worldwide received news that Shinji had defeated the Day Angel in two minutes and thirty seconds.
• Asuka dismissed Shinji’s accomplishment and claimed she could defeat an Angel faster, though she had never fought one.
• At the NERV Bethany Branch, Daphne encouraged Mari Makinami Illustrious as she read the news and remarked that Shinji looked more and more like someone else.

Shinji Ikari watched Rei Ayanami's Unit-00 synchronization test, but the EVA went out of control shortly after startup. Unit-00 broke free of its restraints and attacked the observation lab as the test area's wall began to collapse.

• Gendo Ikari invited Shinji Ikari to watch Rei Ayanami pilot Unit-00, intending to remind him that NERV had other pilots.
• Rei Ayanami entered Unit-00's Entry Plug and thought about her recurring dreams of Shinji Ikari.
• Unit-00's startup systems malfunctioned, and technicians reported that the EVA was out of control.
• Gendo Ikari ordered the experiment terminated, and staff disconnected Unit-00's external power supply.
• Unit-00 broke free of its restraints and punched through the wall toward Shinji Ikari, Misato Katsuragi, and Ritsuko Akagi.

Unit-01 broke into the testing chamber and subdued the rampaging Unit-00 while Shinji Ikari watched. Shinji rescued Rei Ayanami from the Entry Plug, and the chapter ended with her being taken for treatment as Unit-01 was set to return to the First Hangar.

• Unit-00 reached past Gendo Ikari toward Shinji Ikari before Unit-01 smashed through the testing chamber wall and attacked it.
• Unit-01 tore through Unit-00's AT Field and pinned it by the neck as Misato Katsuragi realized Shinji was outside the EVA.
• Shinji Ikari jumped onto Unit-01's shoulder, calming its movements, while Unit-00 shut down and ejected its Entry Plug toward him.
• Shinji Ikari stopped the Entry Plug with an invisible barrier, opened it, and embraced Rei Ayanami.
• Ritsuko Akagi's team immobilized Unit-00 with phenolic resin, and Shinji Ikari learned Unit-01 would be checked before returning to the First Hangar.
• Medical staff carried Rei Ayanami away for treatment as she watched Shinji Ikari disappear.

Gendo Ikari ordered NERV to keep Rei in Unit-00 despite its instability, while Shinji Ikari and Misato Katsuragi discussed Unit-01’s return and their evening plans. The chapter left Shinji waiting for Misato as she went out drinking with Ritsuko Akagi.

• Kozo Fuyutsuki reported that Unit-00’s rampage had been caused by Rei’s mental state and that the technical department wanted to adjust its systems.
• Gendo Ikari ordered the technical department to make Unit-00 stable enough for Rei to pilot it, insisting that Rei would obey him because she was a doll.
• Misato Katsuragi told Shinji Ikari that Unit-01 had been returned to the First Hangar after the technical department examined it.
• Shinji Ikari prepared food while Misato Katsuragi explained that she was going drinking with Ritsuko Akagi and might return late.
• Shinji Ikari said he would wait for Misato Katsuragi, easing her unexplained irritation.

Misato and Ritsuko discussed Shinji’s reasons for staying at NERV and how his outlook seemed to be changing. Misato brought Shinji his official ID and Rei’s updated card, asking him to deliver Rei’s; he remained focused on Unit-01 and his goal of becoming a god.

• At a bar, Misato told Ritsuko that Shinji’s devotion to Unit-01 seemed to anchor him, and that he had begun changing.
• Ritsuko gave Misato Shinji’s official ID and Rei’s updated ID, asking her to have Shinji deliver Rei’s card.
• Misato returned home and found Shinji cooking sukiyaki, then helped bring the meal to the table.
• Misato gave Shinji both ID cards and asked him to pass Rei’s card to her.
• Shinji put the cards away while remaining intent on Unit-01 and becoming a god.

Shinji Ikari reflected on NERV’s purpose and his sense of living in a world that was not his own before visiting Rei Ayanami in the Sixth District. He found her apartment filthy and neglected, then discovered Rei had come out of the bath wearing only a towel and told her to get dressed.

• Shinji Ikari examined his and Rei Ayanami’s NERV ID cards and considered the organization’s symbolism and hidden motives.
• Shinji Ikari visited the apartment assigned to Rei Ayanami in the Sixth District and compared his life to The Truman Show.
• Shinji Ikari entered Rei Ayanami’s unlocked apartment and found its rooms dirty, gloomy, and marked by bloodstained bandages and bedding.
• Rei Ayanami came out of the bath wearing only a towel, and Shinji Ikari told her she could have asked him to bring her clothes.
• Rei Ayanami went to the bedside and began getting dressed.

Shinji Ikari delivered Rei Ayanami her new Identity Card, helped brighten her room, and welcomed her request to call him by his surname. That night, Rei received notice that Unit-00’s reactivation test would take place the next morning.

• Shinji Ikari gave Rei Ayanami her new Identity Card and asked whether her injuries still hurt.
• Shinji Ikari opened Rei Ayanami’s curtains and balcony door, and offered to help her tidy her room.
• Rei Ayanami asked to call Shinji Ikari “Ikari,” and he agreed to call her “Ayanami.”
• Misato Katsuragi drove Shinji Ikari back to the staff dormitory, where they planned to grill meat and drink beer.
• Rei Ayanami chose not to eat the meat in her boxed meal, then received notice of Unit-00’s reactivation test at seven the next morning.

Rei Ayanami successfully reactivated Unit-00, but an Angel alarm interrupted the test. Shinji Ikari arrived at NERV Headquarters as the Angel breached the Odawara Defense Line, and Misato Katsuragi said his deployment was still undecided.

• Rei Ayanami entered Unit-00 for a synchronization test, which proceeded without abnormalities.
• Unit-00 remained stable as Rei piloted it through the prescribed movements, though her synchronization rate was low and unstable.
• An emergency alarm sounded as an Angel breached the Odawara Defense Line.
• Shinji Ikari arrived in the command room and learned that Rei's Unit-00 reactivation test had succeeded.
• Misato Katsuragi told Shinji that whether he would deploy depended on the higher-ups.

Gendo Ikari ordered Rei Ayanami to confront Ramiel in Unit-00 while keeping Shinji Ikari on standby, despite Kozo Fuyutsuki’s concerns about the risk. As Rei’s EVA rose toward the surface, Ramiel detected it and began to transform.

• Gendo Ikari ordered Unit-00 to sortie alone and kept Unit-01 on standby, surprising the command staff.
• Kozo Fuyutsuki questioned whether Rei Ayanami could handle Ramiel alone, while Gendo Ikari said they needed to take back control.
• Gendo Ikari warned Shinji Ikari that the path to godhood would be paved with bones, and Kozo Fuyutsuki sensed menace in his smile.
• Rei Ayanami rose toward the surface in Unit-00 as Misato Katsuragi and Shinji Ikari watched from the command center.
• Shigeru Aoba reported a high-energy reaction inside Ramiel, and the Angel began transforming before Unit-00 reached the surface.

Ramiel transformed and blasted Unit-00 before Rei Ayanami could move, leaving the EVA badly damaged despite its AT Field and a defensive wall. Misato Katsuragi ordered a coordinated barrage against the Angel, but Ramiel survived and fired an even stronger beam as the chapter ended.

• Ramiel transformed into its first form and fired a powerful beam at Rei Ayanami's newly emerged Unit-00.
• Rei Ayanami used Unit-00's AT Field to withstand the beam, while Misato Katsuragi ordered a defensive wall deployed; the attack still badly damaged the EVA.
• Ramiel began transforming again, and Misato Katsuragi ordered the automated guns, missile silos, and railguns to fire in support of Unit-00.
• The barrage struck Ramiel while its AT Field weakened during transformation, but Maya Ibuki reported that its high-energy reaction had not subsided.
• Ramiel fired a stronger focused particle beam through the smoke as Misato Katsuragi realized conventional weapons could not stop it.

The Sixth Angel’s attack left Rei Ayanami and Unit-00 gravely damaged, while Gendo Ikari refused to order their recovery. Shinji Ikari attacked his father, but Kozo Fuyutsuki stopped him and warned that Gendo remained too valuable to those in power for Shinji to act without consequences.

• The Sixth Angel’s enlarged particle cannon overwhelmed Unit-00’s defenses, badly injuring Rei Ayanami and driving her synchronization rate below thirty percent.
• Misato Katsuragi asked Gendo Ikari to order Unit-00’s recovery, but Gendo dismissed Rei as a replaceable doll and gave no new orders.
• Shinji Ikari reached the command platform and punched Gendo Ikari, then continued beating him while the command center focused on the Angel’s attack.
• Kozo Fuyutsuki stopped Shinji Ikari and explained that Gendo Ikari’s position and value to those at the top made him difficult to dispose of.
• Shinji Ikari questioned why Gendo mattered more than he did, and Kozo Fuyutsuki explained that Shinji could be replaced despite his importance as a pilot.

Shinji Ikari suspected NERV’s higher-ups had motives beyond humanity’s survival, while Kozo Fuyutsuki covered for him after he beat Gendo Ikari. The failed operation left Rei Ayanami critically injured and the Sixth Angel hovering without attacking as NERV prepared for its next move.

• Shinji Ikari questioned the higher-ups’ motives and wondered if Angel energy could give him an endless power supply.
• Kozo Fuyutsuki advised Shinji Ikari to endure until he could stand against the world, then declared the operation failed and ordered Unit-00 recovered.
• Shinji Ikari threw the battered Gendo Ikari off the command platform, and Kozo Fuyutsuki temporarily assumed overall command.
• Misato Katsuragi abandoned the interception plan, detonated Unit-00’s supports to shield it from the Sixth Angel’s particle beam, and ordered Rei Ayanami’s emergency recovery.
• Medical staff treated Rei Ayanami after confirming her heartbeat was weak, while the Sixth Angel returned to its crystalline form and stopped attacking.

Misato Katsuragi rejected the proposal to sacrifice NERV Headquarters and began planning another way to stop Ramiel before it reached the headquarters. Meanwhile, Rei Ayanami experienced a dreamlike train ride with a young Shinji Ikari that stirred unfamiliar feelings before the scene faded back toward the underground city.

• Misato Katsuragi learned Ramiel was drilling toward NERV Headquarters and heard that it could reach the area above headquarters by 00:06:54 the next morning.
• The staff reported that Unit-00 could not operate normally, close combat would be extremely difficult, and the N2 Air Bombs would destroy NERV Headquarters along with Ramiel.
• Misato Katsuragi dismissed the suggestion to surrender and asked Shigeru Aoba about the Self-Defense Forces Research Laboratory files.
• Misato Katsuragi asked whether the Child of God had returned as she prepared to pursue another plan.
• Rei Ayanami sat on a train opposite a young Shinji Ikari, who told her his mother was waiting for him and showed her a picture book about Angels.
• Young Shinji Ikari took Rei Ayanami's hand and told her she did not need to understand her pain, only feel it.

Rei Ayanami recovered in the hospital while Shinji Ikari comforted her and told her about the coming Operation Yashima. Meanwhile, Gendo Ikari and Kozo Fuyutsuki discussed Gendo’s confrontation with Shinji and the measures they might take to defeat the remaining Angels.

• Rei Ayanami woke in the hospital, remembered her painful battle, and told Shinji Ikari that she had failed her mission.
• Shinji Ikari encouraged Rei Ayanami to eat, said she had no reason to apologize, and told her that Unit-01 and Unit-00 had to reach the Second Fortress before eight thirty that evening for Operation Yashima.
• Kozo Fuyutsuki confronted Gendo Ikari about his injuries and the malfunctioning surveillance cameras, while Gendo described Shinji’s attack as a direct, if inefficient, way to break their barrier.
• Gendo Ikari said the Dummy System was still being tested and that they would have to rely on their current pilots until it was ready.
• Gendo Ikari said Rei Ayanami might pilot Unit-01 if other measures failed, because the remaining Angels had to be defeated to set the ritual in motion.

As NERV prepared Misato Katsuragi’s plan to defeat Ramiel with a Positron Cannon, Shinji Ikari declared that he would become humanity’s savior. Shinji and Rei Ayanami set out from the Second Fortress as the operation neared its start, while NERV personnel increasingly looked to Shinji with faith.

• NERV monitored Ramiel’s approach while Japan mobilized its resources and powered up the equipment needed for the operation.
• Ritsuko Akagi explained that Rei Ayanami would fire the Positron Cannon at Ramiel’s core, with the Magi System guiding her aim and Unit-01 helping draw out the target.
• Misato Katsuragi urged Shinji Ikari to prioritize his safety, and Shinji vowed that humanity could put its faith in him as its savior.
• Shinji Ikari and Rei Ayanami changed into their combat suits and boarded the surface lift platforms as Unit-01 and Unit-00 awaited them.
• NERV personnel watched Shinji with growing reverence as the pilots prepared to enter battle.

NERV launched a coordinated attack to expose Ramiel’s core, and Rei Ayanami fired the Positron Cannon from Unit-00. The shot pierced a projected core rather than the real one, leaving Ramiel charging a devastating counterattack as Shinji was ordered to launch Unit-01.

• Ramiel destroyed NERV’s missile silos and artillery positions while Misato Katsuragi used the attacks to make him expose his core.
• Rei Ayanami fired the Positron Cannon at Ramiel from Unit-00.
• The shot penetrated one of Ramiel’s projected cores, but Ritsuko Akagi realized the real core remained intact.
• Ramiel transformed into his Sixth Form and gathered energy for a powerful attack.
• A boy’s voice ordered Unit-01 to launch.

Shinji used Unit-01’s shield and blade to withstand Ramiel’s attacks and close in, forcing the Angel to retreat and change tactics. He then exposed Ramiel’s weakness with Unit-01’s eye beams, allowing Rei’s shot to pierce its core.

• Shinji placed Unit-01 in front of Unit-00 and blocked Ramiel’s powerful energy blast with the shield.
• Shinji charged Ramiel while dodging its sweeping laser, then slashed through its prismatic body, but Ramiel’s core survived as its body rejoined.
• Ramiel fired at close range and pushed Unit-01 back, then flew upward to escape.
• Shinji moved Unit-01’s shield aside and fired purple-white rays from its eyes, shattering Ramiel’s weakened A.T. Field and piercing its glowing core.
• Rei’s electric-light shot struck Ramiel as Unit-01 watched its red-glowing core.

Rei Ayanami and the NERV team defeated Ramiel with the Positron Cannon while Shinji Ikari fought in Unit-01. Afterward, a silver-haired boy awakened at Tabgha base and expressed a wish to meet Shinji, while Gendo Ikari and Kozo Fuyutsuki discussed the victory and the Second Child’s coming arrival.

• Rei Ayanami fired the Positron Cannon, which pierced Ramiel’s AT Field and destroyed its core.
• Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi celebrated the victory as Unit-01 stood beneath the blood rain and rainbow.
• A silver-haired boy awoke at Tabgha base, spoke with the No. 1 Throne of Souls Stele, and said he wished to meet Shinji Ikari.
• Gendo Ikari and Kozo Fuyutsuki discussed Lilith, Shinji Ikari’s performance, and the Elders’ interest in him.
• Kozo Fuyutsuki explained that the Second Child was ready to appear and that the Elders wanted stronger combat forces at headquarters.

Shinji Ikari learned that the Angels sought Adam and that NERV had secretly contained the Third Angel at Bethany Base. As Ritsuko Akagi described an upcoming demonstration of Jet Alone, Maki piloted the unfinished Provisional Unit-05 into battle against the escaping Third Angel.

• Shinji Ikari discussed Unit-01’s new sword and shield with Rei Ayanami and Ritsuko Akagi, suggesting that future equipment should protect him from every direction.
• Ritsuko Akagi explained the origins of the Angels, the impacts, and NERV’s secret that Lilith was disguised as Adam.
• Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi told Shinji Ikari about the planned Jet Alone launch and the approaching arrival of the Second Child and new EVA units.
• At Bethany Base, Maki chose Japanese as her thinking language and entered combat in the unfinished Provisional Unit-05 after the Styx Defense System failed.
• A NERV inspector revealed that the Third Angel had been held at Bethany Base for research and modification, while Maki advanced through a tunnel toward the escaping Angel.

Maki fought the Third Angel with Provisional Unit-05, destroyed its core, and escaped before a preprogrammed self-destruct vaporized the machine and Bethany Base. Shinji Ikari, Misato Katsuragi, and Ritsuko Akagi then traveled by UN fighter jet to support Ritsuko as she faced trouble.

• Maki drove Provisional Unit-05 through the tunnels and pursued the Third Angel after it blasted its way out of the base.
• Maki pinned the Third Angel against a towering metal cylinder, grabbed its core with both pincers, and crushed it despite Unit-05 suffering severe damage.
• Unit-05's self-destruct countdown began without Maki's consent, so she ejected the Entry Plug and escaped as the machine and Bethany Base were destroyed.
• Aboard a distant transport plane, a little ponytail reported that the target was gone, Unit-05 had been vaporized, and Maki had escaped safely.
• Shinji Ikari asked why he and Misato Katsuragi were accompanying Ritsuko Akagi, and Misato explained that they were going to support her.
• Ritsuko showed Misato and Shinji classified documents aboard the UN fighter jet, while Misato flirted with Shinji about their evening plans.