Creation began on 05-10-24

Creation ended on 05-30-24

Neon Genesis Evangelion

Demon Slayer Evangelion: Shifts in the Blade

While Enmu was ordered to kill the Demon Slayer with the hanafuda earrings because he wouldn't stop looking for Muzan, he did possess other orders that conflicted with the primary one, such as putting an end to this pale-skinned man that walked among the people and possessed abilities that made him a threat. But upon seeing this other Demon Slayer that bore a resemblance to the pale man, he figured that his order to kill the man would also mean he had to kill this lookalike, too. What would doing so and informing Muzan get him in return? He would have to do so in order to find out.

"You won't be able to kill me," he tells the three men on the roof of the train car. "This isn't even my body you're facing right now. Ha-ha-ha!"

"What are you talking about?" The lookalike questions, confused.

"Simple: Earlier this evening, I fused my body with that of the train, which in turn means this whole train is a part of me now. I can be anywhere and nowhere throughout the entire structure. But can you find me and protect the passengers at the same time?"

This bothered Shinji upon hearing this. Even when he was already informed that there were demons with abilities that made them difficult to contend with, it was still hard to imagine actually facing one, and this one had merged with the train, meaning they were practically in the midsts of a demon already. How were they going to defeat a demon that had possessed a moving train? He could attack them from anywhere and be untouchable.

"You just gave yourself away, Enmu," Death utters.

"Oh, did I, really?" Enmu, the demon, asks.

"If you fused with the train, then all we must do is locate the most convenient part of it to hide your core. There's only so many places on a train you can actually hide from your enemies like the coward you are."

"How dare you?!"

"Well, that is what cowards do, is it not? They wait for an opportunity to strike while hiding in the safety of the shadows because they are not brave enough to step out into light. And as for you demons that knowingly terrorize humans, how far have you chosen to fall in your pursuit of power and influence? What drove you to become the wretched scum that you are?"

"I am going to enjoy killing you."

"Good luck with that. Let you show you why it is futile to try."

Death raised his right arm up…and the metal plates that formed his gauntlet retracted to reveal his skeletal limb. This was his proof that he was unlike the majority of people that walked the world. He wouldn't hesitate to show any why he was the way he was and why he would continue to be like this for as long as he could. What he simply couldn't obtain in his previous life as a mortal, he found such and more in his living afterlife.

"A right hand," went Tanjiro, unable to look away, "made of bone. You're the one they call Death. You're one of the Four Horsemen."

"Death? As in…the Apocalypse?" Enmu asks.

"Not a chance," Death replies. "The last guy with that position was so incompetent that he failed every step of the way. Just as there are four beings to represent the end of days, there are four beings to represent the will of the heavens. Or rather, there were four beings…until a fifth was added into the order. But the end of days is not for a very long time. I'm just a wandering soul walking amongst the living, serving the same role that I fell into because it became my duty as a horseman: Protect the innocent, avenge the innocent, seek out the guilty, punish the guilty. You threaten the lives of the innocent…and you will get whatever you got coming to you. I don't forgive those who knowingly commit evil to the undeserving. Seek atonement for your sins…or prepare for an eternity of the worst Hell has to offer."

-x-

A demon fell to pieces in front of Rengoku's sword.

"That takes care of that," he utters as he sees the disgusting, blood-like tendrils coming out of the walls, floor and ceiling of the car, reaching for the passengers that were unconscious, oblivious of the danger around them.

"Ha!" Rengoku swung his sword and sliced the tendrils away from them, but they seemed to regenerate. "Ha!"

Zenitsu dashed forward and sliced through other tendrils, but wasn't making any headway alongside Rengoku. It was as though these tendrils were an illusion made to tease them.

"We need to sever the head of this snake," Rengoku informs Zenitsu and Inosuke. "Find the head, we end this!"

"But where is the head?" Zenitsu questions.

Thunk! Thunk! They looked up to the ceiling and saw several indentations, indicating a conflict was taking place atop the train.

Inosuke ran towards the front of the car and climbed up to the roof, seeing Tanjiro, Shinji and…Shinji…battling against a demon of blood.

"Huh?!" He reacts, seeing someone that looked like Shinji, only dressed differently and looking paler than the one dressed in the uniform of the Demon Slayer Corps. "What's going on here?!"

The Shinji dressed in the hakama slammed down on the part of the roof in front of Inosuke and responds, "It's a long story! You live through the night, and we'll tell you about it!"

He then jumped up into the air and swung his kama sickle at the blood-like tentacle that sported some sort of head.

"You'll never find me in time to save the passengers," the head expresses, and Inosuke ran across the roof to the front of the train.

-x-

It seemed as though everyone at NERV was ending up scarred in one way or another after the Twelfth Angel incident. But the worst right now was with Asuka, who, according to Ritsuko, had been absorbed into Unit-02 after it devoured the Fourteenth Angel's S² Engine shortly after Asuka had achieved a synchronization ratio with the Eva that was considered unsafe. It would be a month before Ritsuko could implement the operation to restore the girl's body, and Misato was already strung out by everything that happened in the last battle.

First Shinji, Misato thinks, then Asuka. I don't know how much more of this I can take.

Meanwhile, the Committee, or rather, SEELE, were disappointed with Gendo's report over the Fourteenth Angel attack.

"…The S² Engine was never meant to be manifested within the Eva Series, Ikari!" SEELE 06 utters within the council.

"NERV never anticipated an Evangelion would be capable of taking a preexisting one from an Angel in this fashion," Gendo states, disappointed over the fact that he had to use a wheelchair now that he'd maimed by the Fourteenth Angel.

"And now Unit-02 has become this…incarnation of a god-like being," SEELE 01 declares. "Only God may approach the absolute! Mankind must know its place!"

"And to think this all started because you lost Unit-01 and the Third Child," SEELE 11 says, "and then Unit-03 to an Angel, and now NERV HQ has become heavily damaged. It will be three months before the base is fully repaired. Maybe weeks before both your Eva units are repaired."

Gendo had nothing to say about this; nothing was going well for any of them.

-x-

Slice! Inosuke, using his Beast Breathing's fifth fang, carved through the metal that covered most of the back of the engine of the train, revealing, to Shinji's horror, a twisted amalgamation of metal, muscle and bone resembling a spinal column.

"Oh!" He gasps in fright at the sight of it all, but then inhales a new breath and steels his resolve to defeat this demon that fused with the train. "Let's end this!"

Before he could swing his sword at the disgusting sight, the train suddenly bounced off the track and sent him upward.

"Oh!" He gasps but then sees an opportunity presenting itself to him. "Silence the world, silence the noise!"

A second later, all was quiet around himself; he couldn't hear the wind, the train, not even his own heartbeat. His sword glowed with the energy of the breathing style he chose to implement, taking on a greenish coloration.

"Wind Breathing," he utters. "Eighth Form: Primary Gale Slash!"

He swung his sword and unleashed a sense of wind blowing so harsh that it triggered slashes of air that struck the amalgamation of flesh and metal all over, reducing it to shreds.

"Amazing," Inosuke says, unaware that the train, because of this degree of damage, was no longer running properly.

Bash! The train bounced off the track again, but this time was sent flying off onto the elevated land beside the track, crashing into the ground.

Shinji was sent flying across the ground and struck a tree nearby.

Flash! He saw the Geo-Front in ruins, people running from a damaged shelter, an Angel the likes of which he hadn't seen before, and Unit-02 eating the Angel like a savage animal.

What the… What is this?! He wonders, seeing his father on the ground, bleeding from the stump where his leg used to be (not that he was really concerned about him, though). What's going on?!

Flash! He revived and saw Rengoku facing another demon.

"Why?" He hears a voice say, sounding close by, and turns to his right, seeing Enmu's head disintegrating. "You're alive…and yet you're able to fight on par like Death. What's going to happen to me? Where am I going? Where do we go when we die?"

"I'm not sure where we go when we die," Shinji tells him. "Are you sad that you were defeated…or are you sad that you didn't kill us?"

Enmu didn't respond to his question. This made Shinji suspect that he didn't feel remorse for his actions in the slightest degree.

"Maybe if you atone wherever it is you're going," he tells Enmu, "you'll likely wake up one day…and live again."

As the lower part of his head disintegrated, Enmu made a look that indicated he was not moved by Shinji's choice of words or his belief in redemption.

"Who…are you?" He asks him. "Why do you look like Death? Are you related to Death?"

"No. My name is Shinji Ikari. In another life, Death actually used to be someone like me…only he went down a different path. Unlike me, in a crazy way of thinking, his life didn't really start until after he died, and for some people, just some people, you don't truly begin to live until after the day you die."

"Shinji Ikari… At first, I thought that Death and the boy with the hanafuda earrings were the only ones he was concerned about…but now I see clearly. There is something about you that screams of danger to him. Know this well, Shinji Ikari: Some demons will be after you for the threat that you represent to them."

"Are you threatening him?" Shinji hears Death ask as he walks over, carrying two of the passengers and the box that Tanjiro uses to carry his sister around in. "Are you that stripped of your former humanity that you fail to see someone that still chooses to see you as being human instead of as a soulless monster?"

"What is great about being human? Humans are often more vile than the demons they make us to be. We're simply better than they will ever be."

"No argument from me on that assumption, but not all humans are like that. Some humans simply lack the drive to be vile towards one another. Some humans…have more goodness in them than meanness…and their souls eventually guide those of us lost in the darkness back to the light…if that's what we seek above all else upon our ends. But for you…the way back to the light…is only afforded if you seek redemption. Redemption exists for very few in the depths of Hell. Will you be among those few? Are you among those few, Enmu?"

"I believe this is nothing more than a bad dream I will wake up from."

"A bad dream, you say?" Shinji asks him. "Maybe that's all any of this is. Just a bad dream. But it's hardly one for me. You're not supposed to be able to feel pain in a dream, but we feel pain all the time. I still have fears that I can't escape. Concerns that I can't break away from. And when someone dies in front of me, I can't pretend that they're just going to sleep for a while and will wake up again when I know that they may not. The only one that may be exempt from this is Death himself, as he's dead and therefore not subject to the aches and pain of mortality like we are. But still…the actual dream that people have…that they cherish above all else…is often a dream they take with them to the next world. I hope your dream continues for you where you're going. It may be the only peace you will ever have if you choose not to atone for your sins…until someone decides to take it away from you."

His disintegrating eyes and upper head made an expression of sorrow. As a masochist, Enmu couldn't tell the difference between pain and pleasure…until now. This boy, this…Demon Slayer…knew the difference between the two. How a dream was supposed to be painless and full of greatness…and how a nightmare was the same as the waking horrors of reality. He knew that the worst of reality was yet to come for him.

"Muzan Kibutsuji," he utters. "He knows no mercy, even to those that serve him."

And then, his head disintegrated completely, signifying his death.

"He was a member of this…Twelve Kizuki?" Shinji asks Death.

"He was," he answers him. "Albeit the Lower Rank. He was Lower One, meaning he was the strongest of the Lower Rank, but essentially strongest of the weakest. Lower Rank members of the Twelve Kizuki are always changing, so it's not a serious blow to them. But that demon over there… He's one of the Upper Rank members. Upper Three. He's significantly stronger."

Shinji looks over at the demon fighting Rengoku, really giving the man a run for his life as a Demon Slayer of the highest calibre that he could barely keep up with their moves. It was like watching lights that were being swung around in the air at night to entertain people, like a laser show or something. He could see the flames of Rengoku's Flame Breathing style sear through the demon's flesh that kept regenerating, but he could also see that Rengoku was wearing out. And then, for just a moment, he could see Rengoku at his limit, and not in a good way.

"Silence the world," he utters, holding up his sword, "silence the noise."

The world around him became silent once again as he moved forward, towards the demon that clearly loved the thrill of conflict.

"Serpent Breathing," he utters, holding his sword. "First Form: Winding Serpent Slash!"

The Upper Rank demon stopped and saw Shinji, who seemed to move almost as fast as he was moving. Almost as fast as Rengoku, as well, and backed away from the Hashira upon seeing Shinji's sword aimed at his neck, his eyes devoid of any hint of anything remotely human in this moment. And as he backed away, he saw something else: A giant, single-horned beast with ravenous teeth, dressed in purple armor with eyes as red as blood.

A Demon Slayer with a demon for a curse, he thought as he felt the sword connect with the skin of his right shoulder. "Aah!"

Just barely dodging the assault, the demon leapt back several feet and saw Shinji still looking at him, eyes devoid of any emotion…and he could still see that demon behind him. He may have not been a Hashira, but this Demon Slayer was perhaps something of a new threat. He also noticed the other guy that looked identical to this one, but was of paler skin tone and reeked of death and bloodshed. Even if he had managed to kill Rengoku, there was no telling what these two could do if given the chance. And worse, the sun was starting to rise; if he didn't get away while he still could, he wouldn't be getting away at all.

"Who are you?" He questions Shinji.

"You first," the Demon Slayer replies, his voice stripped of fear.

"Akaza of the Twelve Kizuki, Upper Rank Three."

"Shinji Ikari of the Demon Slayer Corps, Mizunoto."

Akaza's eyes widened. This young man was just a newbie…and already, he felt intimidated by the likes of him. But now he knew his name…and felt the bitterness of his anger towards this wretched waste of space.

"I will not forget your face, Shinji Ikari," he tells him as he backs away. "The next time we meet…I will kill you."

And then, he dashed away. Not even Death could feel his presence anywhere near them.

"What do you think that was all about?" Mako asks his brother.

"I'm wondering the same thing right now," Death replies to his twin, just as Shinji drops his sword to the ground.

"Are…are you alright, Mr. Rengoku?" Shinji asks the Flame Hashira.

"I'm…still alive for the moment," Rengoku replies; it wasn't really an answer, but it was the truth for the time being.

He was alive. And Shinji had realized something else, too: He was also alive. He had survived his first mission as a Demon Slayer. As he felt the sun rise behind himself, he couldn't believe that, within the span of the night, aboard the Mugen Train, and against two members of the Twelve Kizuki, he had lived.

Even if it's not that great a success, he thought as he turns to face the injured Flame Hashira.

-x-

Opening her eyes, Rei Ayanami finds herself in the trauma ward once more, wondering what happened before to result in her being there. For a moment, she thought she saw Shinji, but upon turning her head to the right, she saw that the room was empty.

Why? She finds herself wondering.

-x-

The Kakushi arrived a little after the sun came up, and Shinji saw them in action exactly as Death and Mako had explained to him how they operate within the Demon Slayer Corps. Out of the Demon Slayers present on the Mugen Train, only Tanjiro and Rengoku were actually injured; for some reason, despite crashing into a tree when the train jumped the track, Shinji was fine, with the minor exception of his muscles being fatigued from stress. And the people that were aboard the train were checked for any injuries, including the youths that had been working for the demons that tried to kill them, making them indifferent to who they were helping. As he breathed to speed up his recovery, Shinji, sitting against a tree, saw Death talking to one of the youths that had tried to kill them earlier…and noticed how the boy seemed less alive than the others he was with.

What are they talking about? He wonders, seeing the boy say something to Death, but due to the distance was unable to hear what it was and couldn't read lips.

He then saw Death hold up his kama, causing the boy to raise his head up, but Death then threw it to the ground in front of him.

"The boy's upset with his failure," Shinji hears Mako's voice, seeing the ghostly twin beside him on his right.

"Why doesn't he kill him for what he did?" He asks Mako.

"Because he understands why he's upset. The boy's dying."

"Dying?"

"He has TB."

If he could've gasped right now, Shinji would have. Because of the time period they were in, diseases like tuberculosis weren't able to be treated by medical professionals, and anyone unfortunate enough to catch the disease would have difficulty breathing until they died.

"Why did he help those demons?" He asks Mako.

"Because Enmu, the Lower Rank One member of the Twelve Kizuki, promised these kids everlasting dreams if they killed you Demon Slayers. They believed him. They weren't doing it because of money or a desire for power. They did it because they felt hopeless in life, and he preyed on their desperation. It's easy to manipulate others if they feel like they're never going to live a fulfilling life or find meaning in anything they do. But he's got nothing to fear from my brother. Death isn't going to kill him. Not when he still has a full life ahead of him."

"How do you know this?"

"Because Death, despite not being as human as we are, has a deeper understanding of people's drives and why they do what they do. These youths are innocent; they haven't killed or harmed anyone that didn't deserve it…and were just desperate to escape their suffering like anyone else that seeks to get away from their pain."

As they continued to watch the conversation between Death and the sickly boy continue, Shinji thought he saw a pair of wings behind the heavenly Grim Reaper. These large, white wings that represented the status of an actual angel. Then, he saw the boy drop to his knees and sob; whatever they were saying was likely making him feel bad.

"What did Death say to him?" He asks.

"He said he'd help him beat his disease if he atoned for following Enmu," Mako tells him. "If he can, Death will do all in his power to alleviate the suffering that exists around him. Helping people that don't seek the darkness makes him more human than human that way."

Shinji then sees some of the Kakushi carry away Rengoku as one came over to him.

"Can you walk?" He asks Shinji.

"Yes, sir," he answers him as he stands up. "Thank you for helping them."

"It's what we do."

Shinji looks up at the sky, at the sun. Today was a new day…and last night was a nightmare that had been silenced until the next night. So long as these demons exist…and as long as they had the terrible means to influence people's hearts to bend to their will, the world needed the Demon Slayers to protect the innocent. With a new breath, he took his next step towards his path as a Demon Slayer, knowing that there would be more to come now.

To be continued…

A/N: When I'm not watching Demon Slayer on Netflix or Toonami, I'm dependent on the information provided on the Wiki site dedicated to the franchise to help me here, so bear with me. In the end, Rengoku's fate is a little ambiguous here, but since Shinji is present, things will change, just as they are in the Eva universe if the fact that I had Gendo crippled is not an example of how things shift from the canon. Next up is the aftermath recovery!