Evangelion is property of Studio Khara and GAINAX.

Street Fighter and Street Fighter: Assassin's Fist are property of CAPCOM.

NEON GENESIS EVANGELION: SENSHI NO MICHI

Two years ago.

Shinji sniffed for a moment – his nose itched. This portion of the dojo always seemed to be full of dust, no matter how many times Senzo cleaned it. He shifted for a moment, tightening the belt of his gi. Beside him, Asuka sat back, with her gloves removed, contrasting with the boy's kneeling position.

The redhead moved to say something to him, but before she could, the dojo doors slid open, revealing Gouken.

Abruptly, Asuka sat up and shuffled into a kneeling position, trying and failing to discreetly pull her gloves on. Shinji glanced between her and his master, who seemed to be smirking slightly as he walked in front of them.

The two children bowed their heads to Gouken, who nodded. He stood tall and proud in front of the two, his blue gi pulled tight around his muscled form. The master's expression was warm – his smile and eyes were bright.

"You two have come such a long way in such a short time – I cannot tell you how proud I am." Gouken said, his smile only widening as he looked at his children. "And now," he continued, "I believe it is time to progress to the next stage of your training."

Both Shinji and Asuka straightened up slightly, their faces lighting up. It was Asuka who spoke first, her voice high, young, and excited.

"You mean it's time for the Sho…"

Gouken held out a hand, to silence the girl.

"Yes, Asuka. It's time." He replied, with a touch of laughter in his tone. He then looked to Shinji, noticing the boy's subdued but still very present smile as well.

"Well…we might as well get started." The master said, his smile flattening into a more collected, serious expression.

The two in front of him also settled down, their gazes locked upon him.

"As you know, Ansatsuken style teaches three principal techniques." Gouken began. His rigid posture then shifted, as he moved into a stance.

Shinji and Asuka watched as he span with speed and grace, his right leg fully extended and raised just above his waist.

"Tatsumaki Senpukyaku."

Gouken lapsed back into stance, then span again, slower. As he did, he raised his right knee to his waist, and extended his arm towards the ceiling, in front of his face.

"Shoryuken."

Slipping back into stance again, Gouken drew both his hands to his right side, bending slightly at the waist, and then pushed his palms forward, his left above his right.

"And Hadoken."

Already, this small demonstration seemed to have both Shinji and Asuka watching with rapturous gazes - Gouken fought hard to restrain another smile.

"However, these techniques are ineffective without a key component – hado. By channelling our ki, the energy of our bodies, we produce the power necessary to make these attacks powerful."

The raven-haired master stepped forward, gazing down at the two. He noticed how Shinji's eyes shone with unanswered questions, and he looked at the boy.

"Yes, Shinji?"

The boy's tone was quiet, yet firm and inquisitive. "But how do we channel hado, sensei?"

Gouken laughed quietly, then spoke.

"So eager. You will learn to produce and manipulate hado by using Muno Hado, the Power of Nothingness. By detaching from the world around you, you will become aware of the flow of your ki. After that, you will practice willing your ki around your body, until you can surge and manipulate it at will."

This time, it was Asuka who had a question, and she tilted her head in curiosity.

"How do we detach? I mean, it just seems like a lot of effort just to hit someone."

Normally, such a question would have brought a raised eyebrow and a stern comment from Gouken, but an idea had already sprung to mind.

"A lot of effort, you say?" The master replied, with a sly grin. "Very well, then. Follow me."

He beckoned his two students up from the floor, and moved to the doors of the dojo, sliding them open. He stepped out onto the porch, and then onto the sandy ground of outdoors.

Asuka and Shinji stood up slowly, both mystified as they followed their master out into the outdoors training area.

"Now, Asuka. Since you were the one who asked…pick one of the three training dummies over there." Gouken said, indicating a row of wooden, cross-like figures bound with rope.

"Huh?" The girl quirked one eyebrow, confused.

"Pick one."

Asuka's expression fell slightly, as she looked towards her master.

"I'm sorry for speaking out of turn, sensei, but do I have to do drills? I was only –"

"Pick one now. Or do I have to pick one for you?" Gouken asked, turning back towards the young redhead. She stepped back slightly, swallowing.

"Okay…the one in the middle, I guess."

The master smirked, eyes locking with the dummy Asuka had chosen.

"Now…" he said, voice somewhat quiet. "Watch closely."

As Gouken had done before in the demonstration, he drew his hands to his right side, but kept his palms apart.

There was a rush of air, and then an orb of blue light blossomed between them, pulsing brightly.

Asuka's jaw dropped, along with Shinji's.

The light quickly increased in size, seeming to force Gouken's hands apart for a moment, before he pushed back, compressing it to a somewhat smaller scale. The light hummed with power, flares of bright blue energy wafting from it.

"Hadoken!"

With Gouken's shout, he pushed his palms forward, and the orb of energy flew straight at the training dummy, blasting it apart into a mess of sawdust and splinters.

For a moment, all was silent. Then, a shrill voice shouted out.

"That was totally awesome!" Asuka whooped, expression ecstatic, as she looked between Gouken and the remains of the training dummy. The master turned back to her, with a smug smile.

"Well, is it worth the effort?" He asked, watching as the girl nodded up and down ferociously.

With a small chuckle, he then glanced at Shinji, who also bore a wide smile. The boy nodded to his master, his eyes shining.

Now.

Inside of Eva Unit One, Shinji Ikari smiled, eyes closed. His ki flowed over him in refreshing, cool waves, an unmovable and strong presence within.

"Shinji?"

"Mm?" The boy opened one eye, and looked towards his side. Misato's face gazed back at him from inside a hologram, and he sat back, blinking and opening both eyes.

"Captain Katsuragi. Is something the matter?"

"No, no." Misato shook her head, offering a slight smile. "Actually, things are surprisingly good. But we've gotten everything we need for now."

"Oh."

"So, you can come out now. Meet us back in the control booth, okay?" The captain's face blinked out of existence after she had finished speaking, and Shinji let out a sigh, leaning forward in his chair.

He looked ahead, and there was something of a tingling in the back of his mind as the view of Eva Unit Two ahead of him vanished into darkness. The sensation of feeling that had come with synchronisation with the Eva had vanished, and it left Shinji feeling strangely bereft.

It was strange…even a little scary. But for some reason, I felt comfortable. At ease.

There was a gurgling sound, and the boy looked around, realising that the LCL around him was beginning to drain.

Above him, the entry hatch unlocked with a sharp metallic noise, and he looked up as light flooded into the capsule.

Gendo watched with interest as both the Second Child and his son were helped out of the Entry Plugs by the attending technical crews.

Their synchronisation ratios had been no small surprise – and Doctor Akagi had offered little explanation.

Perhaps that man did teach them something useful, after all. Was there anything else to him, to his dojo and his promises? I wonder.

His ruminations came to a stop as he spied Akagi approaching him, and he shifted slightly, looking at her out of the corner of his eye.

"Has there been anything else?" The commander inquired. his gaze stony behind his tinted glasses. Across from him, the Project E head slumped slightly.

"It's completely unexplained. All of our predictions and simulations implied that synchronisation ratios would only be nominally higher than what Rei began with." The bottle blonde shook her head, and glanced out of the window, watching both the Third and the Second approach from their respective catwalks.

"Nevertheless, it is beneficial. Their performance with EVA can only be improved." Gendo mused, an imperceptible confidence in his voice. The doctor narrowed her gaze, in response.

"That's true, yes…and with further study, we may be able to learn more, maybe even boost Rei's synchronisation with Unit Zero…but with the higher level of synchronisation, there comes a higher risk of psychological contamination." She warned.

"Your concerns are noted." The commander replied, sharply, and turned on his heel, his gaze on the door leading out of the room and back into the main NERV complex.

"Sir…" Akagi's voice was almost a whisper behind him. Gendo glanced back, eyes questioning.

"Will you be needing…my presence tonight?" The doctor asked, seeming somewhat timid – she always did. However, she seemed to slacken somewhat whenever the man facing her shook his head, pushing his glasses back up his nose.

"No. There are more important matters to focus on. I want you to spend any free time you have examining these synchronisation scores further – we cannot afford to lose potential victories against the Angels."

"Of course not, Sir." The doctor said, looking down at her feet.

As Gendo disappeared from the room, Shinji and Asuka entered from their separate doors, dripping LCL behind them. The boy stopped for a moment, watching as his father vanished from the room without a word.

With an unreadable expression, he moved back towards Misato, who was near Maya, examining the results of the test.

Asuka took the time to wring out her ponytail, visibly grimacing as a puddle of orange liquid began to form beneath her. With a mumbled Germanic curse, she too headed for Misato, who straightened up, turning to face both her and Shinji.

"Well done, the both of you." The captain began, with a warm smile. "The readings we got were excellent."

Misato watched as both of them reacted to the praise – Shinji seemed to reflexively bow slightly, while Asuka only grinned, crossing her arms. Inwardly, Misato was pleased that the two had seemed to loosen up around her – the successful test had probably helped.

However, there was still a matter to be brokered. She had offered to let them stay at her apartment – which was definitely large enough to accommodate them. Misato only needed to make sure.

"For the rest of the day, you two are both free." The captain began, but she struggled to make her next words seem as unassuming as possible. "You were originally set to stay here, on the base, but personally…"

She broke off, watching how the two children looked at her with interest, Asuka more so than Shinji, who remained reserved and inconspicuous. Exhaling, Misato continued. "I personally believe that a more relaxed environment could really, really help you two."

"Yeah, you offered, right?" Asuka asked, her manner a little blunt. Misato paused, before nodding.

The redhead smiled in reply. "I think that'd be alright. Thanks."

Letting out a breath, Misato let herself return the smile. "My pleasure."

Beside Asuka, Shinji bowed somewhat, his eyes hidden by his fringe. "Thank you, Captain." He said, his voice still formal and reserved, if not a little looser.

"I think 'Misato' will do, when we're at home. Can't be all tall salutes and polished boots all the time…" The woman chuckled, and the boy seemed to brighten up somewhat.

"I just need to get everything sorted out with the brass, and then we'll head over to my apartment. Hope you didn't unpack."

They had not. After the two had showered and changed back into normal clothes, Misato had made a quick phone call to get the matter of Shinji and Asuka's new accommodation straightened out. With that, the new trio were on their way back to the NERV garages, the Captain thankfully navigating the unforgiving corridors of the complex with a degree of ease.

She listened as Shinji and Asuka debated about something, and noticed that their voices weren't nearly as muted as they had been previously when the two had been around her.

Guess they're getting more comfortable with me.

Allowing herself a small moment of pride, Misato turned the corner, and then let out a grunt as she bumped into someone taller than her. Stepping back, she inwardly groaned when she realised who it was.

Just short of six feet, with long, scraggly brown hair tied back into a ponytail, the new arrival looked down at Misato with narrowed brown eyes. His chin and forehead were prominent and wide, and his lips were pursed. He was dressed in a suit and tie, and there was a poorly hidden bulge in his jacket indicating a holstered weapon.

"Captain Katsuragi." The man said, his voice strangely terse.

Behind Misato, Asuka and Shinji exchanged quizzical glances, watching the scene.

"Mind telling me what you're doing with these two kids? Nothing unnatural, nothing that might pose a threat to the security of NERV?" The man spoke with an air of arrogance around him, as he moved closer to Misato, with armed crossed.

"No, nothing unnatural." The woman ground out, meeting the man's gaze with a degree of irritation. "I was simply transporting the Eva Pilots to their new accommodation."

Upon the mention of the Pilots, the man peered around Misato, and then almost seemed to leap forward, coming to a stop in front of Asuka and Shinji.

He bowed slightly, and then almost seemed to sneer down at the two children.

The man introduced himself with a proud voice, and a confident grin. "Captain Dan Hibiki. I'm the head honcho of NERV-Section Two. I run the security details all around this place. Pleasure to meet ya."

Across from him, Asuka and Shinji looked at each other, before the redhead replied, sceptical.

"Uh-huh. Nice to meet you."

"Now…" Dan continued, failing to pick up on the unimpressed tone in Asuka's voice. "Since you're so high-priority, I can personally guarantee nothing is gonna happen to you on my watch. I'm a crack shot, and a master martial artist. Nothing's getting past me!" The man smirked. Behind him, Misato rolled her eyes.

Except social cues.

"Anyhow, it was great to meet you, but I have to go. NERV isn't going to protect itself!" With an energetic thumbs-up, Dan turned on his heel, and swiftly strode past them, humming a tune to himself.

Shinji's eyes followed him for a moment, before looking back at Misato. The boy offered a slightly unsure smile, before speaking. "He seems…ernest."

"He seems like he's got his head up his ass…" Asuka mumbled, beside him. Misato nodded, slowly.

"Believe me, you're not far off." The woman replied, with a sigh. "We're close to the garage now. Hungry?"

The two children nodded eagerly.

"Starving." The redhead replied.

And a little more character development, before we really get into the action. Hope you're enjoying the story so far. I blasted this thing out in two hours - just for you. Because I love you.

Platonically.

Read and review, please!