Chapter Summaries

SEELE launched a coordinated attack on NERV Headquarters and its MAGI systems as the Power Angel advanced into the Underground City. Ritsuko Akagi activated Protection 666 while Maki fought the Angel in Unit-02, but its layered AT Fields overwhelmed her first assault.

• SEELE compromised NERV's external terminals and attacked Headquarters through at least five MAGI units as the Power Angel approached.
• Ritsuko Akagi activated Protection 666 through Casper, restoring a small portion of NERV's systems.
• Kozo Fuyutsuki warned Shinji Ikari that SEELE's intrusion was an opening move aimed at seizing Headquarters and the remaining EVAs.
• Maki piloted Unit-02 into the Underground City and fired at the Power Angel as collapsing buildings threatened NERV.
• Maki attacked with the Sonic Glaive, but the Power Angel's multiple layered AT Fields repelled Unit-02 and blasted it into a crater.

The Elders approved a forceful assault on NERV while the Power Angel overwhelmed Unit-02 and Headquarters struggled to restore its systems. As Shinji, Ritsuko, and Rei headed to start Unit-01 manually, the Self-Defense Forces invaded Tokyo-3 and Misato ordered NERV into combat deployment.

• The First Obelisk persuaded the Elders to seize Headquarters by force and pursue humanity’s evolution into godhood.
• The Elders’ forces began a massive bombardment of Tokyo-3 with aircraft, tanks, and rocket trucks.
• Ritsuko Akagi and Shinji Ikari decided to start Unit-01 manually, and Shinji called Rei Ayanami to join them.
• The MAGI reported damage and intruders as the Special Science Battalion and other forces attacked NERV Headquarters.
• Kozo Fuyutsuki left to question Gendo Ikari, while Misato Katsuragi ordered Level One Combat Deployment and Shigeru Aoba armed Maya Ibuki.

Shinji Ikari, Ritsuko Akagi, and Rei Ayanami were trapped inside NERV Headquarters as armed intruders closed in, but United Nations forces intervened and revealed that Shinji’s ally had launched a counterattack. The United Nations forces struck the Self-Defense Forces near Tokyo-3 and prepared to engage them at sea.

• Ritsuko Akagi led Shinji Ikari and Rei Ayanami into a room and searched for a route through NERV Headquarters while armed intruders approached.
• Shinji Ikari opened the door after hearing a cry, but an intruder behind him was shot by arriving United Nations soldiers, who reported to him as Third Child and Colonel.
• Shinji Ikari said his ally had made his move against the people responsible for the attack on NERV.
• Self-Defense Forces aircraft heading toward NERV Headquarters were crippled by an electromagnetic-pulse missile and destroyed by a follow-up barrage launched from the Tama Region.
• United Nations aircraft from Fuchu arrived over Tokyo-3 as the Pacific Fleet prepared its weapons and received orders to fire.

Maki activated Unit-02’s Beast Mode to fight the Power Angel, but the Angel’s Composite AT Fields and tentacle attacks overwhelmed the transformed EVA. At the First Hangar, Shinji saw Unit-01’s upgraded F-Type Equipment, and Ritsuko prepared it for a test.

• Maki activated Beast Mode, transforming Unit-02 into a powerful beast and disengaging its limiters.
• Unit-02 broke through the Power Angel’s overlapping AT Fields, but a Composite AT Field blocked its attacks.
• The Power Angel pierced Unit-02’s abdomen, severed its left arm, and wounded its head before Unit-02 collapsed.
• Shinji Ikari saw Unit-01 outfitted with F-Type Equipment and learned that Ritsuko Akagi had upgraded it beyond its visible armor.
• Ritsuko prepared Unit-01’s Entry Plug without an Umbilical Cord cable so Shinji could test the upgraded unit.

Shinji Ikari entered Unit-01 and triggered its awakening, transforming it into a divine white giant as Third Impact began. In Central Dogma, Gendo Ikari explained the Black Moon and his plans for godhood before Kozo Fuyutsuki arrived and Gendo was shot dead.

• Ritsuko Akagi prepared a mechanical Entry Plug so Shinji Ikari could pilot the upgraded Unit-01 despite the system being down.
• Shinji Ikari reflected on Yui Ikari's soul living inside Unit-01 and decided he would not choose between his mother and humanity.
• Shinji Ikari entered Unit-01, whose synchronization rate soared past its critical threshold as the S2 Engine and his power awakened it.
• Unit-01 turned white and spread an enormous crimson canopy as Shinji Ikari ascended toward godhood and the Guf Gate appeared to open.
• Gendo Ikari explained that Third Impact and the Black Moon were stirring while the Guf Gate remained closed, then Kozo Fuyutsuki reported that the Self-Defense Forces had breached the base.
• Several gunshots struck Gendo Ikari, and his head burst apart.

Gendo Ikari survived an execution by the Self-Defense Forces, transformed into a being beyond humanity, and entered the newly created Unit-07 to pursue his plan for Instrumentality and reunion with Yui. Meanwhile, Shinji stopped the Third Impact from spreading, and he and Rei prepared to move out.

• The Self-Defense Forces shot Gendo Ikari, but he rose again and revealed that the Key of Nebuchadnezzar had transformed his body.
• Gendo Ikari killed the attacking soldiers and introduced Unit-07, a purple giant assembled from Adam's remains, the Womb Angel, Unit-03, and the Hail Angel.
• Gendo Ikari explained his plan to use Shinji, the S2 Engine, and two divine spears to complete Unit-07's pseudo-deification and initiate a fourth impact.
• Gendo Ikari entered Unit-07, which pulled the Spear of Longinus from Lilith and departed to seek another spear.
• Ritsuko Akagi feared the Third Impact had begun, but Unit-01's light faded without killing the soldiers, and Shinji spoke to her over the communicator.
• Rei Ayanami called to Shinji, who reassured her and ordered her to move out.

Nine Mass-Production Evangelions arrived in Tokyo-3 and fought the Power Angel, using their replica Spears of Longinus to break through its A.T. Field and pin it to the ground. As the units regenerated with their S2 Engines, they turned their attention to Maki.

• Nine Mass-Production Evangelions emerged from the hole above Tokyo-3, and Maki called out to them for help.
• The Mass-Production Evangelions ignored Maki and attacked the Power Angel with replica Spears of Longinus.
• The Power Angel struck back, destroying several units, but the Mass-Production Evangelions coordinated their attacks and pierced its A.T. Field.
• Eight replica Spears of Longinus pinned the Power Angel to the ground after its core cracked and its A.T. Field collapsed.
• The damaged Mass-Production Evangelions regenerated using their S2 Engines, and several turned to look at Maki.

Unit-01 transformed into a godlike form and defeated the Mass-Production Evangelions threatening the Power Angel. After the battle, Misato learned Rei was helping the United Nations Forces aboveground, while Ritsuko described Unit-01’s transformation as her gift to Shinji.

• Maki realized the Mass-Production Evangelions had turned their attention to Unit-01, which had become the battlefield’s greatest threat.
• Unit-01 caught a Pseudo-Spear of Longinus and hurled it back, pinning the Mass-Production Evangelion that had thrown it.
• Unit-01 annihilated another Mass-Production Evangelion and transformed further, manifesting six pairs of wings of light that terrified the remaining machines.
• Ritsuko Akagi arrived in the command room with United Nations Forces troops and told Misato Katsuragi that Rei was piloting Unit-00 aboveground.
• Unit-01 destroyed the remaining six Mass-Production Evangelions by piercing their Entry Plugs before they could detonate their S2 Engines.

The Power Angel absorbed two Mass-Production Evangelions and evolved, but Unit-01 crushed its core. Shinji then continued toward an unknown goal, while Gendo Ikari confronted Kaworu Nagisa in Unit-06, who said he had come to prevent Shinji from doing something he would regret.

• The Power Angel consumed two Mass-Production Evangelions, transformed into a humanlike form, and gained their S2 Engines.
• Unit-01 split the Power Angel’s AT Field and crushed its exposed core.
• Ritsuko Akagi urged Shinji Ikari to finish the fight, but Shinji said he still had something to do, and Misato Katsuragi gave him her approval.
• Gendo Ikari, now transformed through the Key of Nebuchadnezzar, faced Kaworu Nagisa in Unit-06, which carried the Spear of Cassius and an S2 Engine.
• Kaworu Nagisa told Gendo Ikari that he had come to keep Shinji from doing something he would regret.

Kaworu Nagisa fought Gendo Ikari in Unit-06 and was defeated after Unit-07 revealed hidden arms and killed him, but an explosion destroyed Unit-07’s core. Gendo took Unit-06’s core and the Spear of Cassius, only for Shinji Ikari to arrive and punch Unit-07.

• Kaworu Nagisa told Gendo Ikari he would save Shinji and challenged him in Unit-06.
• Unit-06 and Unit-07 clashed with the Spear of Cassius and the Spear of Longinus, and Kaworu pierced Unit-07’s abdomen.
• Unit-07 revealed hidden arms, trapped Unit-06, and pierced Kaworu’s head with the Spear of Longinus.
• A miniature N2 Bomb destroyed Unit-07’s core, but Unit-07 bit through Unit-06’s chest, ate its core, and regenerated.
• Gendo Ikari claimed Unit-06’s core and the Spear of Cassius, but Shinji Ikari appeared and punched Unit-07 in the face.

Shinji Ikari defeated Gendo Ikari in their battle beneath the Black Moon and rejected the world Gendo wanted to create. Gendo apologized before Unit-07 crumbled, and Shinji turned toward Lilith with the Spear of Longinus.

• Gendo Ikari and Shinji Ikari clashed as Unit-07 and Unit-01, their Absolute Fields shaking the underground chamber.
• Shinji used Unit-01's spears of light to trap and tear apart Unit-07, then drove the Spear of Cassius into its core.
• Shinji told Gendo that the world he chose was one without Absolute Fields, while Gendo admitted he feared loneliness and only wanted to see Yui again.
• Gendo acknowledged that he had abandoned Shinji and apologized before Unit-07 crumbled away.
• Shinji took up the Spear of Longinus and looked toward Lilith on the central platform.

Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi discovered that Shinji Ikari had vanished after merging with Unit-01, while Shinji awakened in a dreamlike world with his mother, Yui Ikari. He recognized the world was unreal and left to return to the people waiting for him, promising Yui he would come back.

• Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi reached Final Dogma and found Shinji absent from Unit-01, with no record of the Entry Plug ejecting.
• Ritsuko Akagi concluded Shinji had merged with Unit-01 as LCL after his synchronization rate exceeded 400%.
• Ritsuko Akagi vowed to bring Shinji back, while Misato Katsuragi panicked over his disappearance.
• Shinji Ikari ate breakfast with Yui Ikari in a dreamlike version of his home and described his complicated romantic problems.
• Shinji told Yui that their world was a shared dream and that he needed to leave for the people waiting for him.
• Yui Ikari said she could not come with Shinji yet, and he promised to return to her.

NERV ANIMA maintained its global Angel defense network while four Ayanami pilots returned to Tokyo-3. Rei Ayanami learned that her body's lifespan had been extended to thirty years.

• NERV ANIMA's five spaceborne Angel Type EVAs patrolled the globe as part of Misato Katsuragi's Sword of Damocles project.
• The chapter described NERV ANIMA's rise, SEELE's fall, and Ryoji Kaji's role in exposing the Human Instrumentality Project.
• Metatron, Seraphim, Cherubim, and Thrones returned to Tokyo-3 with Ayanami pilots in their cockpits.
• Asuka asked Rei Ayanami how much longer she could live, and Rei reported that her body could last thirty years.

After three years inside Unit-01, Shinji Ikari returned to the world and reunited with the women who had been waiting for him. He explained that he had stopped Third Impact by controlling the ritual, as the world prepared to hear that its celebrated savior had come back.

• Rei Ayanami and Asuka visited Unit-01 and Lilith with the Gospel Church, where Kaworu Nagisa preached that their God would return.
• Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi arrived to test their latest attempt to bring Shinji back, but Unit-01 suddenly moved and revealed him standing in its hands.
• Shinji descended from Unit-01, returned to ANIMA's command office, and had his long hair cut as the women gathered around him.
• Shinji learned that NERV had taken over Japan after the government collapsed and that ANIMA had publicized his deeds as humanity's savior.
• Shinji told Ritsuko that he had initiated Third Impact but stopped it through his will, explaining that he could control its ritual and neutralize AT Fields.

Shinji Ikari returned to NERV, where Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi confirmed his identity and discovered that he had evolved into a form of life unlike humans. After Asuka and Rei Ayanami brought him to his room, Asuka confessed how much she had missed him, and Rei arrived to find Asuka leaving.

• Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi examined Shinji Ikari and confirmed that he was himself, while Ritsuko noted his unprecedented physical evolution.
• Ritsuko promised to investigate Shinji’s condition and the Unit-01 issue, while Misato arranged a room for him at the base.
• Shinji asked Misato and Ritsuko to find the Re: Dead Sea Scrolls, then went to the dormitory with Asuka and Rei Ayanami.
• Alone with Shinji, Asuka admitted that she had missed him and explained that she had changed her appearance because she worried he would not recognize her.
• Rei returned with dinner and saw Asuka leaving Shinji’s room, reigniting her familiar anger.

After Shinji Ikari returned, the world learned of his resurrection and the Gospel Church treated him as its divine ruler. The chapter also showed the Ayanamis reacting in unison to something involving their eldest sister, then ended with Ritsuko Akagi teasing Shinji about Maya Ibuki.

• Trois learned that Shinji Ikari had returned from inside the white giant and struggled to sleep while thinking about him.
• Trois sensed something strange and found every Ayanami standing in her doorway, their crimson eyes meeting; they named themselves the Ayanami Army.
• Shinji Ikari woke to worldwide news of his return, and the Gospel Church's influence made him Japan's de facto leader.
• Ritsuko Akagi explained that the Gospel Church had abandoned plans for Shinji's coronation because its doctrine already regarded him as God.
• Ritsuko Akagi teased Shinji about having a child with Maya Ibuki, and Maya sprang up and shouted, "Senpai!"

Ritsuko Akagi explained that Shinji Ikari’s reconstructed body had stabilized and surpassed the Angels through the power of his soul. The group then reviewed Unit-01’s armor upgrade proposal and argued over Misato Katsuragi’s suggested name, Super Unit-01.

• Ritsuko Akagi told Shinji Ikari that his body had reached a stable, godlike state and that his halo reflected power from his soul.
• Ritsuko Akagi explained that Rei Ayanami’s body relied on Dr. Yui Ikari’s genes and Lilith’s cells, while Shinji said he could still distinguish Rei from his mother.
• Ritsuko Akagi handed Shinji Ikari a proposal to refit Unit-01 with Modified F-Type Equipment.
• Shinji Ikari rejected Misato Katsuragi’s proposed name, Super Unit-01, while Misato defended it and Ritsuko sided with Shinji.

After waking from a three-year absence, Shinji Ikari toured the transformed ANIMA base with Asuka and Rei Ayanami and met Maki and four Ayanami girls. The chapter ended as another familiar voice called to him from behind.

• Shinji Ikari visited the hangar and saw the 180-meter Unit-01 and the upgraded EVAs, including Unit-02, Unit-06, and Unit-08.
• Asuka and Rei Ayanami showed Shinji the hangar and explained that the pilots’ self-images influenced their EVAs’ appearances.
• Shinji saw the underground city’s surface section, Heaven, and the Strategic Self-Defense Forces’ transformable Akashima units.
• Maki rushed toward Shinji, but Asuka elbowed her before she could hug him; Maki explained she had been pardoned and was now Unit-08’s pilot.
• Maki introduced Trowa, Quatre, Chang, and Six, four girls with the Ayanami surname, whose feelings flowed into Rei Ayanami.
• Shinji patted Six’s head, then heard a familiar voice call his name from behind.

Shinji Ikari spoke with Kaworu Nagisa about the repeated cycles of the world and learned that this cycle was unprecedented. As Shinji accepted Kaworu as his pope, a force corrupted the EVA Archangel in deep space and turned its gaze toward Earth.

• Shinji Ikari talked privately with Kaworu Nagisa, who revealed that he was a Free Angel fitted with a coded detonator.
• Kaworu told Shinji that he remembered fragments of many cycles in which souls converged, and that Shinji had ended the last cycle by becoming a god and creating a new world.
• Kaworu explained that this cycle differed from all the ones he remembered, and Shinji said they would take a path with God.
• Shinji asked Kaworu to remain his pope and rejected the idea that Kaworu had to be destroyed because he was an Angel.
• An unidentified force breached the EVA Archangel's A.T. Field beyond the moon, infected it with dark-gold energy, and caused it to turn toward Earth.

Shinji Ikari tested the Akashima with Maki and returned to the base, where an emergency erupted as the five EVA Angels in orbit began descending. The commander ordered the control room to stay calm and respond.

• Shinji Ikari piloted an Akashima while Maki served as gunner, then told her it was a capable conventional weapon but far inferior to an EVA.
• Shinji Ikari and Maki returned to the base as the Child of God and his Personal Secretary Saintess amid reverent greetings.
• Maya Ibuki praised the Akashima combat test, and Shinji Ikari said it was a groundbreaking conventional weapon.
• After Shinji Ikari returned from his physical examination with Ritsuko Akagi, alarms sounded and staff reported that all five EVA Angels had left their orbits and lost contact with telemetry.
• The older woman serving as Commander-in-Chief reached the control room and ordered everyone to remain calm and continue working.