AN at the end, enjoy.

Ten years ago

It was a dark and stormy night for Kamurocho, the sky was burdened with the occasional flash of lightning and thunder. But for the people of Japan it was another ordinary day in the once great entertainment district. The streets were sparse with activity, many of the buildings were shut down or collapsed. Anyone who perused these once busy streets a decade ago would not recognize it.

"It just ain't what it used to be, huh sir?"

Kiryu Kazuma looked to the right seat of the limo he was seated in. Sitting in his usual black and purple suit, was his long time friend and subordinate Shinji Tanaka. Kiryu took a moment to truly grasp the difference between the boy he met seventeen years ago. The boy he met back then was angry, a product of abuse and abandonment. But here and now? He was a fully fledged man. A lieutenant in the Tojo Clan, respected by many and Kiryu's right hand man.

As the new Chairman of the Tojo Clan, Kiryu could not ask for a better friend.

Kiryu's thoughts returned to the conversation, "No, it's not."

Kamurocho was a husk of its former self compared to back in the eighties during the economic bubble. Even after the bubble burst it still managed to hold a part of what made it so glamorous and attractive to the people of Japan. The last five years have not been too kind on it.

'Second Impact' it was called, a meteor that struck the South Pole and caused massive changes to the Earth. Wars were waged following the meteor strike, all grabs for resources and land. It wasn't long before the nukes started dropping, and Japan was not spared. Many parts of Japan were hit and while Kamurocho was not a direct target the consequences hit the district nonetheless.

The aftermath of the war hit hard, with so many people afraid to leave their homes, customers dried up, and because of that so did the money. The Tojo clan, holding a majority of the property of Kamurocho due to the plans made just under two decades ago, did not escape the troubles. The last few years were a struggle, to put it lightly. The Tojo was a mess, many lost their lives following a civil war that took the lives of many, including his brother Nishiki, and most importantly of all his foster father Kazama-san.

A ring from Shinji's phone got his attention, "One sec boss." He apologized before answering his phone. Shinji listened, occasionally muttering his acknowledgement before sighing and putting his phone away.

"What is it?" Kiryu asked.

"It's nothing sir, please pay it no mind." Shinji waved it off, but Kiryu could tell there was something bothering him. He never called him 'sir' unless he was being serious.

"Shinji…" Kiryu started.

The man shifted in his seat, he tried to keep quiet but it seemed like Kiryu's stare got to him. "One of the guys, they said a big gambler of ours was spotted on the streets."

"And?"

"He has some debts that need to be paid, and it was due a couple days ago." Kiryu nodded, he remembered that back in the day he used to shakedown citizens that were late on their payments. The events that unfolded afterward shaped him into the man he was today.

"How much does he owe us?" Kiryu asked.

He quickly looked at his phone, "¥1,000,000"

Kiryu leaned back into his seat, that was a lot of money for a citizen, he must have been a big spender. Some cushy job in the government perhaps? "Where is he?"

"Our men spotted him in the Nakamichi Alleys, I'll have some of them head over." Kiryu raised his arm.

"No need, I will handle it myself. We are in Kamurocho after all." He motioned to the driver to stop.

Shinji looked confused, "Sir if there is a problem please let me know so I can fix it." He urged Kiryu, thinking he had caused a problem for his senior.

Kiryu shook his head, "I want to do this, one last time, before I subject myself to being behind a desk for the rest of my career." Shinji looked him in the eyes, Kiryu did not look away.

They stared at each other for a short time before Shinji nodded, he quickly got out of the limo and around to his end opening the door for Kiryu. "We will be back in thirty minutes." He told the driver, he was met with a 'Yes sir' and proceeded to drive off.

Without the limo in his way Kiryu looked down the street in front of him, Tenkaichi street. The once thriving district now only held a couple of people at any one moment. Most were drunks or homeless, usually people looking to drown their sorrow away in the few bars that still stood.

"Let's walk, Shinji." Kiryu walked ahead of him, Shinji wordlessly followed.

Memories flood back into Kiryu as he walked the streets, days of him running into Mr. Shakedown near the Poppo convenience store, of his fight with Kuze, sharing drinks with Nishiki and Reina in Serena. Those were good times.

"Umbrella, sir?" Shinji opened one, probably getting it from the limo.

Kiryu nodded and the two of them walked through what was left of Kamurocho.

"The district is a bust." Kiryu pointed out, despite how obvious it was.

"Yeah, it's gonna be hard building all this back up."

"We aren't rebuilding Kamurocho," Shinji looked at him as if he had grown a second head. "Even if the economy gets better, we cannot continue to pump money into this district.

The Kamurocho Revitalization Program that had started decades ago - and had cost many people their lives - was a bust. In all aspects, it would have been a profitable venture. But Second Impact changed everything, and the Tojo Clan was sent reeling from the costs required to keep the district running. According to all the data that was given to him, and Kazama-san before him, it was time to ditch Kamurocho for greener pastures.

Kiryu looked off in the distance, the half completed jewel of Kamurocho stood as a testament to the district's potential. Millennium Tower was in the process of being built when Second Impact occurred, it was nearly completed too, requiring another year of construction before it was ready to open. But it wasn't given the opportunity to, and was now the embodiment of Kamurocho. A once grand idea, snuffed out before it could reach its true potential.

He could only think of the half-Chinese businessman, Tachibana, who had given his life to stave off the Tojo Clan in hopes to protect his sister from any who would come after her and her deed to the Empty Lot. Now some twenty odd years later, the land he fought hard for has turned into a dump and his sister…Kiryu hoped that she still lived.

The two walked to their destination, the alleys weren't particularly far from Tenkaichi so it only took a couple minutes of walking to arrive. Even from outside the alleys Kiryu can hear a man muttering to himself, frustrated and panicking. The crack of thunder made the man wince, quickly looking up and back down to his money.

"Stand back sir, I got this." Shinji said as he pushed the umbrella to Kiryu.

The older Yakuza shook his head, pushing the umbrella back to his subordinate. "I said I will handle it, and I intend to."

Kiryu walked out from under the umbrella and turned the corner, sure enough the man was there counting his money, he did this multiple times. Perhaps he was starting to realize the money he owed was not there.

"Your payment is late." Kiryu said, his words making the man freeze.

Their debtor turned around, he was a middle aged man, nothing particularly unique about him. Kiryu would say that his face was just one of many he would see everyday back when Kamurocho was livelier.

"Please, I…I can get the money just…I need more time." The man pleaded.

"How many times have they extended their payment, Shinji?" Kiryu asked.

"Three times, sir." He responded firmly.

The man shook like a wet dog, which wasn't far off as the man was soaked in rain water. His eyes told Kiryu that he was rejecting the events unfolding in front of him.

"Your time is up, give me the money or else." Kiryu punched his fist into his palm to exaggerate.

"Please! Please just let me-!" The man moved to Kiryu but was met with a right hook.

Kiryu didn't stop and continued beating the man. Punch after punch, cry after cry, rang in the empty city streets of Kamurocho. There would be no cops. Back then, the streets were too loud for anyone to hear the cries of one man getting beat up in an alley. Now they were empty, few living souls even existed in this part of Japan.

As Kiryu aimed to punch the man again, he remembered the day that changed his life forever. A common civilian just like the one in front of him, beaten in the Empty Lot, later found murdered by those who wanted to get the deed to the small vacant plot of land for themselves. Kiryu swung once more, his fist was about to make its mark against his face one last time before stopping mere hair lengths away.

He quickly had no more appetite for this.

Kiryu let the man fall to the ground and wiped his knuckles clean of the man's blood. Kiryu grabbed the man's money, a measly ¥75,000. "Let's go Shinji." He commanded as he pocketed the money and started walking away.

"Call the Limo Shinji, let us-"

His words were muted under the sound of a boom like thunder, but there was no lightning.

Kiryu turned around to see Shinji spread his body as far across him as he could as an unmistakable red liquid dripped to the ground.

"Shinji?" Kiryu asked in disbelief.

Another crack and Shinji's body spasmed before falling backward, his chest had two holes in them. Kiryu looked forward, the man he had just beaten held a small gun aiming towards him.

Action took over as Kiryu rushed the man, but it was too far, and the debtor fired his gun. The first missed. The man was shaking, his aim was awful, but if Kiryu could just get close enough…

Bang.

Kiryu fell to the ground, pain exploded from his knee, the debtor somehow got his mark but not where he wanted. Kiryu cradled his knee, a bullet hole made his blood run from the wound.

"I told you, JUST A FEW MORE DAYS!" The debtor yelled.

Kiryu tried to get up, but his right leg fell out from under him, he could not stand. Kiryu looked back to Shinji, hoping he was alright, but his chest wasn't rising.

"I could have gotten you the money, I SWEAR! But you had to push me! YOU have to take responsibility for your actions!" The debtor tried to reason his way out, obviously having a mental breakdown.

Kiryu could only look at Shinji's still body, and could only feel anger.

"If you had only listen-!" The man was cut off as Kiryu used his left leg to propel him onto the debtor.

Kiryu punched, and punched, he did not stop punching. Anger had overtaken him, Shinji was shot because of him, because of his selfish desire to do one last walk through Kamurocho.

Kiryu couldn't tell anyone how long he punched him, only knowing that it was a while. The only reason he stopped was because a nearby trash can fell over. Kiryu snapped his head to look at the commotion.

"Huh?"

There stood a young boy, frightened, clearly not understanding what was happening. Fear was written all over his face.

"What are you doing here?" Kiryu asked, reaching out to the child.

The boy flinched away, it was then Kiryu realized just how bloodied he was. His hands were caked in it. His usual white suit jacket stained. No doubt his face was covered too.

Kiryu wiped his hands and face as clean as best he could and rolled off the debtor, it didn't take a genius to tell the man was dead. "It's ok." Kiryu said softly, but the boy didn't believe him.

"Why are you here?" Kiryu asked.

"He said he needed money, he…he robbed people." So that's where he got the money from.

Kiryu dragged himself to the closest wall so he could sit up right, Shinji's body still didn't move. He was dead.

"What's your name, kid?" Kiryu asked.

The boy didn't respond immediately as Kiryu slumped against the wall. What would he tell Shinji's girlfriend?

The situation finally hit him as he looked at the boy once again. History had repeated. There was Kiryu, sitting beside the dead body of this boy's father, that he killed. It was ironic that Kiryu would repeat his foster father. He had just orphaned a boy, just like Kiryu was.

"My name is Shinji," The boy stepped closer. "Shinji Ikari."

To Become A Dragon

Shinji's eyes gently opened to the pale white tiles of the room he was in. He blinked, and again just to make doubly sure.

"This isn't my room." He noticed as he sat up.

The room was emptier than he realized, it was his bed, a small drawer and a cabinet in the corner. Otherwise the large room was empty.

"Where am I?" He tried to remember yesterday but it was all a blur, trying to even think about yesterday gave him a headache.

He stopped trying to recall the other day and slipped out of bed. The clothes he wore were soft and white, it felt new. These weren't his usual sleepwear.

"Hello?" He called out, but no one responded.

He walked to the window, he was in a GeoFront…yeah now he was remembering. "I went to Tokyo-3 because my father called for me, and Kazuma-san thought it was a good idea." His memories got foggier after arriving at Tokyo-3.

He shook his head and left his room, no one was there, he was alone again. Walking the halls he was again left with no one to speak to. This went on for minutes of him walking the halls before he heard anything other than his own footsteps. The rattling of metal came from down the hall as a nurse pushed a gurney. As it passed by Shinji could see the occupant of the gurney, a blue haired girl covered in bandages.

Rei Ayanami.

The two of them briefly exchanged looks before she was gone, being pushed to a room somewhere else perhaps. Shinji slowly started to remember the events of yesterday. He remembered facing his father, finding out why he was brought here, and what it was that he fought yesterday.

"Right, the EVA." Shinji rubbed his left arm, the one that was broken just the other day. It felt fine all things considered.

"Shinji Ikari?" The boy looked up to a doctor holding a clipboard.

"Yes?"

"You've been cleared to leave, your clothes are waiting for you in your room. Once changed you are to meet Cpt. Katsuragi in the lobby. Will you need help finding your way back?"

Shinji shook his head.

Going back to the room he slept in he found his clothes were laying stacked on the bed. He slipped into them and left to the lobby. Like the rest of (what he could only assume was) the hospital, it was practically empty. Such a large place and there was barely anyone using it.

He sat himself down and waited for Misato, which thankfully wasn't too long.

The woman was dressed in the same attire as she was when she picked him up, cleaner too. "Hey there kiddo, you ready to go?"

Shinji nodded and followed her. The drive to NERV was short, after all they were still inside the Geo Front. Navigating NERV was also thankfully not as big a hassle as it was the other day, maybe Misato finally understood the layout. Whatever it was, she had guided them to a small office on one of the higher floors, the plaque on the door read 'Vice-Commander'.

Inside, sitting behind a desk, was an older man with gray-white hair wearing a dark red suit. He wasn't doing anything as Shinji walked in, so he was likely waiting on them.

"It is a pleasure to finally meet you pilot, I am Kozo Fuyutsuki, Vice-Commander of NERV. My apologies for the abrupt introductions to NERV a few days ago, as you experienced, we were short on time and couldn't give you the correct introductions." Fuyutsuki gave a small bow in order to convey his apology.

"Wait, a few days ago?" Shinji asked.

The Vice-Commander nodded, "You have been unconscious for five days now, we were starting to worry if you'd wake up. Thankfully you already have, so we have nothing to fear."

Shinji shrugged, agreeing with the old man, "Um, what exactly am I here for?"

Fuyutsuki nodded to Misato, "This is a formal meeting to get you acquainted with your new living situation. Going forward you are officially an employee of NERV and a part of the Japanese military. You answer only to NERV and the United Nations, but we are your priority." She clarified his position and put a package in front of him.

Picking it up was a lot of the same legalese he read when he first came to the Geo-Front, "I'm being drafted?" Shinji asked.

"Only you can pilot Evangelion Unit-01, your actions in the previous operations proved you can fight. You have already agreed to this as well." Fuyutsuki told him.

"I did say I would pilot it," Shinji started rubbing the back of his neck, "But I didn't think it would be permanent. Can't somebody more qualified do this, like an actual soldier?" He asked.

Fuyutsuki shook his head, "If we could, we would have done this already. The number of candidates eligible to pilot an Evangelion is astronomically low, in the entire world only three candidates have been found. You are the third and last candidate."

Shinji gulped, across the entire world only three people have the ability to pilot, nearly four billion people live on Earth and the number is that low? "So, I guess I have no choice?"

Once again Fuyutsuki shook his head, "Under U.N. regulations following Second Impact, all would-be child soldiers in any member nation have the right to reject service. As a member of the United Nations we are obligated to enforce this rule. As it pertains to you, it is within your rights to return to civilian life if you so choose."

"But," Shinji started, "There are so few people who can pilot that I'm all but required to join." Neither adult said anything. He didn't dare look Misato in the eyes, he could almost feel the quiet veil of shame wrapped around her.

"Needless to say, our foe does not engage in orthodox warfare. No amount of armies will be enough to defeat the Angels. Even one of our most destructive bombs can only slow them down. The only weapon capable of defeating them are Evangelions."

They were guilt tripping him, he could feel it. From the sounds of it, that thing he fought was not the last, and if no one was able to pilot the EVA they would be unstoppable. Despite what the Vice-Commander told him, he didn't have a choice. It was either get in the robot, or let humanity die. A non-choice.

"Then, I suppose I will be your pilot." Shinji affirmed.

Fuyutsuki did not smile, in fact he hadn't stopped frowning since Shinji had met the man. "Good, as a pilot under NERV and the United Nations you are hereby granted the rank of First lieutenant. Your military rank is mostly for paperwork, under the eyes of the JSDF you are simply a civilian so don't wave it around like it means anything."

"Which also means you now fall under the Head of Operations, that would be me." Misato said, "As your Commanding Officer you follow my orders and regimine, lastly until further notice you are my ward.

"Wait, you're supposed to be my caretaker?" Shinji asked, "But what about-?"

The Vice-Commander interrupted him, "Your previous caretaker has been notified of the changes, the paperwork is already done. Cpt. Katsuragi is your commanding officer and caretaker, you will do as she says."

"If you're my caretaker, does that mean I live with you?" Shinji asked.

Misato smiled, "You bet roommate."

Fuyutsuki sighed, "We intended to have you live on your own, but Cpt. Katsuragi insisted on having you room and board with her after finding your living space…unfitting."

With a few pieces of paper to sign, Shinji was officially a member of NERV as a pilot for Evangelion Unit-01. Finally done, the duo of Misato and Shinji left the office.

"You'll love being roomies, I promise." Misato embellished the lifestyle, one Shinji was not unfamiliar to.

"I know what it's like Ms. Misato, I grew up with multiple kids under the same roof." The two of them walked down the hall to the nearest elevator, Shinji clicked the button to call it up.

"Oh? That sounds like a story, why don't we pick up some food on the way back and you can tell me all about it over dinner?' She gave a smile as the elevator dinged.

Shinji took a step forward but stopped when he saw who was in it.

His father..

The three of them remained silent, with his father and him staring at each other. Shinji was the first to back down, as he looked away from his father. Shinji didn't even realize he balled his fists looking at his doors closed and Misato called another elevator to them.

The rest of the walk to Misato's beat up car was silent. Misato drove through the streets of the GeoFront before catching a lift to the surface.

Misato drove them to the nearest Poppo to pick up food for the night, while they stood in line to check out Shinji could overhear a couple of women talking.

"I don't know if it's safe anymore. I mean this place was advertised as a fortress, did you see the destruction the other day?" She gossiped to her friend.

"My husband says he wants me and the kids to move while he works here, what do you think?"

"I think we were lied to is what I think, did you hear the news that one of the civilian shelters collapsed?" Shinji went stiff.

"Yeah, they haven't said how yet."

"My coworker said that her neighbor was in there and it felt like the building was pushed, but that sounds ridiculous."

"Obviously." The woman agreed.

The two left, and shortly after so did Misato and Shinji. The car ride to Misato's apartment was quiet, Shinji too lost in his thoughts to speak with Misato. Was he responsible for the building collapsing on a civilian shelter? Did…did he hurt people?

"Hey," Misato abruptly said, "You mind if we stop for a sec?" She pulled the car off the road. They were on a sort of look out overseeing the entire Tokyo-3.

"What are we doing here?" He asked.

"Just watch." She said.

A siren went off, and shortly after buildings started to rise. What was once a barren city looked like a metropolis in minutes.

"That's what I wanted to show you, the city you saved."

"So this is Tokyo-3." When not under attack by a monster, it was pretty to look at. So full of life. In comparison to Tokyo-2, the city was much grander. Maybe living here wouldn't be as big a problem as he thought it would be.

It was only a quarter hour later before they got to Misato's apartment. "Welcome home, roomie! Look, they already got your stuff." Misato pointed to a stack of boxes with his name on it.

How did they even get his things? He was really going to have to apologize to Kazuma-san as soon as he could.

"Well, c'mon in Shinji!" Misato stepped through the door.

One more step, and Shinji would be accepting the life that was thrusted upon him. This strange world of Angels, Evangelions, and military organizations. He didn't particularly like the idea, he already was very busy before all this. But if it meant keeping his friends and family safe, and he was the only one who could do it…how could he not accept it? He was given a duty, whether he liked it or not. Kazuma-san would understand.

The rest of the night he and Misato talked, quickly learning that she preferred to live like a pig more than a person, and found his other roommate in an event he wished to quickly forget ever happened. Pen-Pen the hot spring penguin was…well a penguin who lived with Misato and liked to watch TV for some reason.

"Don't mind him, he's pretty relaxed. As long as he's fed, he shouldn't be a problem." Misato said after downing another can of beer.

Shinji had his reservations living with an animal, but the penguin seemed to stick to himself well enough.

"Thank you for dinner," Shinji would hardly call it food but he didn't want to be rude, "I'm gonna go to sleep for the night, see you tomorrow." Misato gave a thumbs up as she was mid-drink of yet another can of beer.

There at night, Shinji looked at his phone screen. He pulled up Kazuma-san's number, but hesitated clicking it. He constantly assured himself that the man would understand his situation…but would he really. Doubt ate away at him before he closed his phone. "Maybe tomorrow." Shinji told himself.

In the restroom, Misato sat in a hot bath soaking off the day's sweat while having a conversation with her drinking buddy and long time friend Ritsuko.

"So, how is he holding up?" The doctor asked.

"He seems fine, a little too calm if you ask me." Misato stretched, a few bones popping.

"Remember, as his caretaker you are to make sure his needs are met and that he remains functional for operations with his EVA. That means no messing around."

Misato rolled her eyes, "I got it, sheesh, you don't need to tell me twice. Not like I need to worry, you saw what he did. He was all like," Misato mimicked some corny ninja attacks she once saw in a movie trying to emulate how Shinji fought the Angel. "Y'know, like a badass."

"That's what concerns me, frankly," The faint sounds of paper turning could be heard in the background, "Nothing on his record says that he had any military training like the Second Child. He fought as if he was a master martial artist."

Misato did a detailed analysis of the boy when word came in that the director's son was coming in to test for EVA compatibility. In school he was in the 80th percentile of his class, he didn't take any after school clubs or was associated with any self-defense classes. He was a normal boy. But when he fought the Angel? It was like looking at a seasoned fighter.

Misato thought back to the fight, just five days ago.

It was after Shinji pushed the Angel off of him that she started to notice a change. Unit-01 stood high, clutching at its chest and looking like it threw something away.

"What is it doing? Status on the pilot!" She commanded.

"I-um…pilot heart beat lowering to acceptable levels." One of the bridge bunnies, Ibuki she remembered, sat red faced looking at a monitor.

"Something wrong?" She asked.

"I-uh…"

"Spit it out." Misato bit at her, she was in no mood for antics now.

"The pilot…took his shirt off, for some reason." Ibuki reported.

Misato didn't know how to respond, so she decided to re-focus her attention on the fight. It was magnificent.

The kid fought like hell, pulling off maneuvers not even Asuka was able to pull. When the fight was coming to the end, the Angel produced an A.T. Field. It was an impenetrable wall of energy that Misato didn't know the science behind but she thought of it like a shield. Shinji treated it like a punching bag. Each punch from the EVA caused dangerously high wind speeds, but it was worth it as Unit-01 was able to tear through it. But the Angel didn't take it lying down. It emitted a beam of energy that blew up part of the city.

"That blast just hit one of our civilian shelters!" Another bridge bunny, Makoto, called out.

Shinji continued his assault on the Angel, beating down on his opponent until he just stopped.

"What is he doing?" Ritsuko asked.

"What's going on with the pilot?" She called out.

"Nothing ma'am, the pilot isn't experiencing any problems!"

Still Shinji did nothing. Misato pulled up her mic, "Shinji, finish it!"

Before the pilot could respond the Angel latched onto Unit-01 and self-destructed. The next few minutes were filled with scrambling to check if Shinji was ok. They were given their answer when Unit-01 walked out of the flames mostly unscathed.

The next few days were clean up and preparing the public with a PR blitz.

Now here she was, sitting in a bathtub talking to her drinking buddy about the boy that just saved humanity. "However he learned to fight like this, it saved us all. Can we really afford to look a gift horse in the mouth?"

Ritsuko sighed, "I suppose not. But I expect you to probe into it."

Misato groaned, "Fine, I'll ask him about it. I'll let you know what I find out. We still going out for drinks tomorrow?"

It was Ritsuko's turn to groan, "I'll let you know, the commander put a lot on my plate."

The two of them said their goodbyes before Misato dried herself and went to her room. Before she did, she stopped in front of Shinij's door.

"Hey, you up?" She knocked on the door and opened it up a little.

Shinji was asleep in his bed, his phone in hand flipped open. It was on the contact list, it had a few names, about a dozen. The one it was clicked on read 'Kiryu Kazuma'. His caretaker perhaps? She wouldn't lie, she was interested in what kind of life Shinji had before coming to Tokyo-3, but she wouldn't invade his privacy like this. Instead, she simply shut the phone off.

"Good night, Shinji," She said as she walked out. "You're gonna need it for training."

I had a lot of fun writing the Kiryu section, mostly because it does A LOT of set up for this story. Particularly the events of Yakuza 1 which, what I can tell you now, is not the same. Let's just say that the consequences of Second Impact would be dire in the world of the Yakuza.