From the author : We finally came back to Tokyo 3. And Shinji will meet Kaworu
don't own Neon Genesis Evangelion and Akira
Neon Genesis Evangelion belongs to Studio GAINAX and Hideaki Anno
Akira belongs to Kōdansha and Katsuhiro Ōtomo
"this" is speech
'this' is thought
NEON GENESIS EVANGELION HIGHWAY STAR : THE BALLAD OF SHINJI IKARI
Chapter 38 : Silver and red
"Eahhh , so weird coming back to school after all the stuff we went through in Neogoya. It just feels so , mundane"-Asuka said as Shinji took a sip of his Soda
"I wouldn't worry too much about it Asuka , wait few days and you'll get used back to the routine"-Shinji said as they walked inside the classroom , and much to his shock he found he Mana , Musashi and Keita sitting in some of the desks
"Oh hey Shinji"-Mana said as Shinji had a surprised expression while Asuka had a frown on hers
"Lemme guess , the JSSDF ordered you to spy on us, that's why you're enlisted in the same class ?"-Shinji asked sarcastically as Mana wanted to reply before she stopped herself
"So he was right ?"-Asuka asked as Mana nodded
"Now now, the lesson is about to start and-Ikari ! Put your legs off the table !"-Hikari scolded as Shinji only yawned
"Come on rep , gimme a break. We're just getting used to mundane routine"-Shinji said as he opened his laptop before he got a hit on his head from Mana
"OW ! WHAT WAS THAT FOR ?"-Shinji screamed as he fell down from his chair as Asuka released a single giggle
"WHY ARE YOU LAUGHING ?! Aren't people in relationships supposed to back each other up ?"-Shinji asked as Asuka had a small grin on his face while Mana cleaned her hands
"Correct , but it was too funny not to stop it , if i was a such a control freak i would do it myself but watching someone else do it is pretty funny , good one Mana"-Asuka said as Shinji got up back on his chair
"Also you need someone to discipline you ! This is not home Shinji ! At least act civilized"-Mana said as Toji and Kensuke could only look with sorrow at their compatriot
"Not only a girlfriend , but also a friend. Shin-man will never get a break will he ?"-Toji asked as Kensuke only sadly shaked his head
"Never , until the end of his days Shinji will be bettered by women. Hell grid girls will be hitting him with umbrellas"-Kensuke said as they fistpump while Shinji was wiping his head
"Both of them are right ! Also you get that idle butt of yours to work ! You and Aida have clean-up duty"-Hikari said as Shinji , Asuka and Rei shared a look
"Well , i can't , i have work"-Shinji said as Asuka nodded
"Yeah , he's right. Really important work"-Asuka said as Hikari looked non-convinced and then looked at Rei
"Ayanami , where is your brother going ?"-Hikari asked as Rei shaked
"I promised i won't tell anything , im sorry class representative Horaki"-Rei said as Shinji showed a thumbs up to her as Hikari looked unpleasant from the lack knowledge, and just as she wanted to ask Rei more the teacher peaked his head to the classroom
"Miss Horaki ? Can you come here for a second ?"-The teacher asked as Hikari only shot a quick glare at Shinji before walking out of the classroom 'Damn it Rep , can i get some peace and quiet ? I have something much more important to do later'-Shinji thought as the teacher and Hikari walked inside the classroom
"Ok , rise , bow and sit down"-Hikari said as the class followed the sequence
"We want to introduce the new student"-The teacher said as Kaworu walked inside the classroom , and Shinji and Mana were shocked
"I am Kaworu Nagisa , it's a pleasure to meet you all"-Kaworu said as he looked at Shinji with a smile before he sat at one of the desks. 'Ok , what , the fuck ?!'-Shinji thought as he decided to focus on stuff on the internet to not think about a guy who literally wears his dead best friend's face
PRIVATE MESSAGE FROM : MANA K - accept Y/N ?
Y
MANA K: OK , SOMETHING IS WRONG. NAGISA LITERALLY WEARS TAKURO'S FACE
SHINJI I: WELL , THEY SAY THAT THERE ARE 8 PEOPLE THAT LOOK EXACTLY THE SAME SO ?
MANA K: SHINJI , LOOK , IT'S LITERALLY TAKURO IN A NEGATIVE FILTER. IT'S REALLY UNCANNY VALLEY
SHINJI I: MAYBE IT'S A RELATIVE , I AGREE THAT THE SIMILARITIES ARE 1 ON 1 ACCURACY AND IT MAKES ME AFRAID , I'LL ASK HIM OF HIS FAMILY RELATIVES. FROM NOW ON , DON'T LOOK AT HIM , DON'T THINK ABOUT HIM , JUST PRETEND HE DOESN'T EXIST BEFORE WE WILL COME UP WITH A SATISFYING CONCLUSION TO THIS SITUATION
Shinji finished the talk as he focused his thoughts on the funny texts in the internet that he shared with Asuka , another few hours passed as Shinji decided the mundane routine would be the better way of ignoring Nagisa , as Shinji made his way to see his bike he noticed Kaworu looking over it
"Hey hey hey ! What your business with the H-"-Shinji asked before he was cutted off by Kaworu
"Highway Star finale , a heavily modified 1995 Honda CBR900RR SC28 drilled out to 1500cc. Enhanced with a ceramic disc drives and a military rocket engine system , a work of a genius"-Kaworu quickly cut him off as Shinji was surprised at the knowledge
"A fan ? I don't give out autographs , but i have another question Nagisa"-Shinji said as he walked up closer to Kaworu
"And what the question would be Ikari-kun ?"-Kaworu asked in a tone that Shinji couldn't take down to its fundamentals. The only thing that Shinji could see was his smile that even if it seemed genuine it also sent the creeps in his gut
"That would be about your relatives , do you have anyone that lives here ?"-Shinji asked as Kaworu shaked his head
"No, sadly , I don't have relatives. From what I know my parents died in a car crash"-Kaworu said as Shinji nodded. 'Well now it gets weird , but that's not important for now , now I should prepare for Nihonmatsu'-he thought as he decided to head back to school.
"Ok , that was a conversation , see you Nagisa"-Shinji said as he walked back to the classroom just before the bell. As he sat in his seat he now began to think about Kaworu. 'Maybe it's just a coincidence ? A really similar and creepy coincidence that speaks almost the same voice only a bit higher , it's really weird'-Shinji thought as he turned his head backwards and looked at Kaworu who was humming "Ode to Joy". 'And he listens to CLASSICAL MUSIC ?! Takuro I knew would never do it !'-Shinji thought as he noticed a message on his laptop , and it was Asuka
PRIVATE MESSAGE FROM : ASUKA L.S - accept Y/N ?
Y
ASUKA L.S : WHY ARE YOU LOOKING AT NAGISA LIKE THAT ? WHAT DID HE DO TO PISS YOU OFF ON HIS FIRST DAY ?
SHINJI I : I'M NOT PISSED OFF. IT'S JUST HE LOOKS EXACTLY LIKE TAKURO , AND NOT ONLY SIMILAR , A LITERAL CLONE. THAT ONLY SENDS SHIVERS DOWN MY SPINE
ASUKA L.S : DON'T YOU THINK THAT IT'S A PRETTY PARANOIAC IN THE WAY YOU SAY IT ? I'M SURE THAT THERE ARE SOME DIFFERENCES
SHINJI I : THAT'S THE MOST CREEPY PART , THERE AREN'T. EVEN A TINY DIFFERENCE , THERE IS NONE I COULD FIND , IT WAS LIKE LOOKING AT A GHOST. EVEN MANA SEEMED CREEPED OUT
ASUKA L.S : NOT TO MENTION HOW INCREDIBLY PALE IS. I WONDER HOW LONG IT TAKES BEFORE SUN BURNS HIM OFF
SHINJI I : OH , LIKE ROBERT PATTINSON IN THAT MOVIE ?
ASUKA L.S : IF YOU WILL MENTION TWILIGHT TO ME , I'LL RIP YOUR EYEBALLS OUT AND PUT THEM INSIDE YOUR ASS
SHINJI I : HA , OK
Shinji wrote as he continued with his method of learning , and that learning absolutely nothing instead focusing his thoughts on various image boards and motorcycle news pages. And so the day was passing before they reached the launch break.
"Ok chef , what did you prepare ?"-Asuka asked as she , Shinji and Rei were sitting on the bench near the door to the classroom. Shinji quickly reached out for their bentos
"Standard , for Asuka as meaty as possible and for Rei Vegetarian as always , and for me"-Shinji said as he reached out for a portable ramen bowl.
"No fair ! You could've told me you bought one of these !"-Asuka said as Shinji opened the bowl and begun to eat his Ramen
"Should've asked"-Shinji said as he continued to focus on his food ignoring his girlfriend's disapproval comments. But the quick feast was quickly cut off by Kaworu who was sitting in front of them with his food.
"You're focusing too much"-Asuka said as Shinji looked at her with a confused expression as Asuka frowned
"Just imagine him wearing a funny hat or something , maybe it will take your eyes off his looks"-Asuka said as Shinji did as she said and imagined him wearing a cockhat , and after a few laughs Shinji finally omitted his looks as he returned to eat his food. Another lesson began as Shinji couldn't focus on anything as he looked at the watch on his phone. '30 minutes , 30 minutes before pickup'-Shinji thought as he looked at the window and tried not to explode in impatience. As Rai instructed him Shinji gave them the cords for his school. 'At least I don't have to ask my old man for a VTOL'-he thought as Asuka was looking at him and then at Kaworu. 'Stop making my boyfriend confused'-Asuka thought as something immediately landed on the rooftop.
"Oh snap ! My pickup came earlier , I'm leaving teach ! And dinner is in the fridge"-Shinji said as he grabbed his stuff and put it into a sports bag before rushing to the rooftop. And as everyone try to not contain their emotions the shaking immediately disappeared as Hikari walked up to Asuka
"What the hell was that ?!"-Hikari asked as Asuka whispered something to her ear
"WHAT ?! But its-"-Hikari was quickly cut off by Asuka's hand that landed on her mouth before she whispered something to her ear
"Do you want to end up with a bullet hole or a sliced head ? Yeah i thought so , so please keep your mouth shut so that you won't end up in an unmarked gravein some forest"-Asuka said as Hikari nodded and got back to her place. The rest of the lesson Asuka spent bored since there wasn't a Shinji she could talk to or see some imageboards , but she settled on something else. And that was to interrogate Nagisa and make him leave her dummy alone. As the bell rang Asuka began her search for Kaworu. 'For gott's sake , where can such a person hide ? He is definitely not your typical guy'-Asuka thought as she searched the entire school building to find him. She asked Hikari but she only sent her away with a memo. And Asuka was getting more inpatient as she cursed under her breath with Rei following her. And she sighed again as she noticed Toji and Kensuke
"Stooges !"-Asuka called out to them as Toji and Kensuke turned around
"Can you stop calling us like that ? We're your boyfriend's best friends so we deserve some respect !"-Toji said as Asuka only chuckled
"Last time I remembered your name wasn't Kaneda. I'm not here to bicker , im looking for Nagisa , seen him ?"-Asuka asked as Toji turned his head
"Nope , who cares about that vampire anyways ?"-Toji asked as Kensuke jumped in front of him
"I've seen him talking with some girls down there"-Kensuke said as he pointed at Kaworu talking with two girls on the lower level
"Thank you Aida , Lets go Rei !"-Asuka said as they rushed down the moving escalator and found themselves standing behind Kaworu
"We need to talk"-Asuka said as she grabbed Kaworu by the collar of his shirt and took him out of the eye of the public with Rei following them
"Is something wrong Soryu-san ?"-Kaworu asked her with his smile as Asuka had more and more reason to want to punch his face
"Yeah I do , one is why do you keep bothering my Shinji ? And the other is why do you exactly like a guy named Takuro Hiei ?"-Asuka asked as Kaworu continued to smile
"It's because I'm interested in Ikari-kun , I've been wanting to meet him for a long time. And for your second question, I don't know why I was bestowed by my looks , perhaps its destiny. Now if you excuse me i have to head to NERV"-Kaworu said as Asuka let go of him before he took out a helmet and a pair of gloves
"NERV ? Who the hell are you ?"-Asuka said as they followed him to another parking lot to reveal a factory-fresh Kawasaki Ninja H2R
"Nagisa Kaworu , the 4th child. It was good to meet you , and you must be Ayanami Rei"-Kaworu said as he caressed Rei's cheek , Rei quickly grabbed his hand and put it down
"I would ask not to put your hands on my face"-Rei said as Kaworu nodded
"I will take notice of that"-Kaworu said as he put on his helmet and his gloves before mounting his H2R and riding away.
"Have you seen that ? What an arschloch , but I do gotta admit it's a nice bike. I can only hope that Shinji is doing ok"-Asuka thought as Shinji was giving all he could
"Last turn baby come on !"-Shinji said under his helmet as he pushed his Kawasaki to the max before he reached the start finish straight as he noticed the info board on the pit wall
IKA
1:06:112
+ 0,162
PIT
"What ?"-Shinji said as he took the bike across the smooth turns of the Ebisu circuit as he managed to overtake his teammate Saku Tayama before he managed to reach the pit road. And as he stopped his bike and the crew grabbed the bike as Shinji got off it and walked up towards Sadao
"Why did you bring me in ?"-Shinji asked as he took off his Namerikawa racing helmet
"We wanted to ask how the bike feels , how does it feel ?"-Sadao asked as Shinji looked at the bike
"It feels heavy , we should try to thin it off. Maybe it will help me to boost me a bit towards Tayama"-Shinji said as Sadao looked at the bike
"Any ideas ? You still manage to push it through the expected time , but you seem to want get further than Saku"-Sadao said as Shinji grabbed a notebook and pen
"Let's try putting less fuel in , it will requiring stopping for fuel but at least i'll have a chance at better qualifying time and first few laps"-Shinji said as he wrote it in the notebook
"Fine , let's see how it will go"-Sadao said as he ordered the pit crew to extract some of the fuel before Shinji mounted it
"Ok , go !"-Sadao said as Shinji rode off from the pit garage and made his way to the turn 1 just as Saku entered the pits
"How is it going with Ikari ?"-Saku asked as he walked up to Sadao
"Pretty good , he seems like he wants to push further than you. we cut the fuel by half so that Ikari will improve his times"-Sadao said as Saku only laughed
"Well , he said that he wanted to win a championship in his first season. Also he is kinda right , the bike does feel kinda heavy"-Saku said as someone rushed towards them with a stopwatch
"Boss ! 1:05:021"-A man from the pit wall said as Sadao took a look at it
"All right , it probably worked. Go display it on the board"-Sadao said as the man nodded and rushed to the pit wall
"Saku ! Its ready !"-One of the mechanics said as Saku nodded and put on his helmet before he rushed to his bike and joined Shinji on the track. Meanwhile Shinji felt a lot smoother as he watched the info board with the times correcting. And after 15 laps of pushing the bike to its limits the low-fuel signal lit up on Shinji's hud. 'Crap , going in'-He thought as he let the bike to the pits before stopping as the pit crew were already prepared. Shinji got off and rushed to Sadao
"So , how did it feel ?"-Sadao asked as Shinji pointed to the bike
"It handles well , but still it's a racing bike. If fuel runs out in a bad moment the whole race is destroyed"-Shinji said as Sadao agreed before he showed him the laptop with his times
"Your times have improved , but you're right. Saku said the same thing"-Sadao said as Shinji looked at the bike and got up from the chair
"Everyone ! We're taking the bike apart !"-Shinji said as everyone looked at him
"Ikari , what are you doing ?"-Sadao asked as Shinji smirked
"Sadao , get me the regulations book. We're gonna do some cutting"-Shinji said as Sadao looked at him nodded before the crew got to work and quickly took apart the ZX-10R as Shinji and Sadao read through the regs.
"Ok , cut those two out , take apart the engine and replace the screws for lighter ones"-Shinji said as the crew worked on the bike . Few hours passed as they put the bike back together before they opened the garage gate to reveal Miyuki
"Oh , boss"-Shinji said as Miyuki took off her sunglasses
"Ikari , what were you doing instead of doing laps ?"-Miyuki asked as Shinji put on his suit back
"Modifying the bike for my liking"-Shinji said as Miyuki looked at the parts laying on the floor
"Cutting and taking out parts ?"-Miyuki asked as Shinji put on his helmet and instructed the crew to start the bike up and he made his way to the track and felt that the bike was more maneuverable. And took corners more nicely as Shinji took the lap nice and smoothly , and as he found himself at the start finish straight he did another lap before he stopped in the pits
"How did I go ?"-Shinji asked as Sadao showed him the stopwatch
"1:04 flat , good enough to take the pole here at the last race"-Sadao said as he smacked Shinji's back
"See boss ? Have some faith"-Shinji said as Miyuki smirked
"Fine , now get back out there before that helicopter has to send you home"-Miyuki said as Shinji nodded and slid down his visor before riding away
A/N : Now I know that this meeting was pretty anticlimactic , but the next chapter Shinji will have more chances for integration with him. As we spend our time in NERV and return to the main plot