Pov Narrator.
"Ah… so you think you're very tough?" Isagi said with a tight smile, his eyes narrowing slightly as he released him. "Ah!"
Isagi's fist crashed into the right side of the yakuza's face with a dry, forceful blow. The man's head snapped violently to the side from the impact, and a thread of blood began to slide from his split lip.
It had been a restrained hit. Controlled. Because if he had done it with all his strength he probably would have torn his head off.
The yakuza barely gasped, but he didn't fall. Isagi grabbed him by the collar again, pulling him upward to force him to look him in the eyes once more. He wanted to see if he was still just as brave.
"Now talk!" he snapped, shaking him harder. "Talk, son of the Great Wall! Talk even if it's in Mandarin!"
Despite the pain clearly throbbing on his face, despite the blood, despite the situation. He didn't seem worried. His eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at Isagi with contempt.
"You're just a kid. You don't have the guts."
"Ssss… son of a…" He clicked his tongue, clearly irritated. "Now you've bought your ticket." He turned his head slightly. "Makima." He extended his hand without letting go of the yakuza. "Give me a gun, one of those on the floor."
Makima did not react immediately. She hummed softly for a moment, as if evaluating the situation or simply enjoying the moment. Then, with a slight nod, she crouched down calmly.
She took a firearm from the still warm hands of one of the dead yakuza. The blood was still fresh. Without showing any discomfort, she stood up and naturally placed the weapon in Isagi's hand.
"Here you go."
Isagi gripped it firmly. He turned the weapon. And pointed it directly at the man's head.
"Now then, slanted eyes, who sent you?" His finger rested on the trigger.
"Shoot."
The yakuza remained completely still, with a confident smile on his face, as if daring Isagi to do it… as if he knew he wouldn't pull the trigger.
As if he believed it was a bluff. But Isagi did not hesitate. He pulled the trigger.
Click.
The dry sound of the weapon echoed through the carriage.
The yakuza reacted immediately, jerking his head aside out of pure reflex, his body tensing instantly… the scare ran through his whole body in a fraction of a second.
But… Nothing. There was no shot. No bullet. The weapon was empty.
"Damn it!" the yakuza spat, now truly shaken, his breathing a bit heavier. "You're insane, brat!"
"Makima!" Isagi turned his head toward her in disbelief, raising the gun slightly. "This thing has no bullets."
He pointed at the empty magazine with obvious annoyance. Makima looked at him with complete calm.
"My apologies for that."
As if it were nothing. As if she hadn't just ruined an execution moment. She calmly crouched down and took a magazine with bullets, handing it to Isagi without any hurry.
Isagi took it, clearly annoyed, his eyebrows furrowed as he inserted the magazine into the base of the weapon with a firm motion.
"Damn it Makima. I'm trying to kill someone." He slid the safety. Now it was ready. "Alright Taiwanese." he said, pointing directly at his head again. "Who is your leader and why did you want to kill us?!"
The yakuza was no longer smiling the same way.
"Hey, hey!" His voice changed, losing that initial confidence. "Red hair, take the gun away from this brat!"
Makima did not move. She simply watched him. Her lips curved slightly into a small smile, almost imperceptible, seeing how the man had completely lost his composure.
Now there was fear. Isagi tilted his head slightly, without lowering the weapon.
"You don't want to talk? Perfect, this time I'll blow your brains out, and I said brains not those!" He pressed the gun slightly closer. "Start praying to Allah, or any god you know so he can save you a spot in heaven or hell." His voice became faster, more frantic, almost chaotic. "Forgive me God because I'm about to sin!"
The yakuza swallowed hard. Sweat began to run down his forehead. And for the first time, he truly felt close to death.
"STOP!"
The yakuza's shout cut through the air before Isagi pulled the trigger. His voice came out desperate.
Isagi did stop. His finger was still on the trigger, but he didn't press it. His gaze remained fixed on him, slightly tilted, as if he were still debating between shooting or listening.
After all… fear of death worked miracles.
"It was… it was our leader…" the yakuza began, swallowing with difficulty, feeling the gun barrel still pointed directly at his forehead. "I don't know his name, he never, never told us, but he ordered us to kill you first to start the plan."
"What plan?"
Makima intervened. Her voice was soft. But different. She stood up and stepped forward, placing herself right in front of the yakuza. Her gaze locked directly into his eyes.
And that was enough. The man shuddered.
Makima's yellow eyes, with those concentric rings… were not normal. There was something about them that made him feel exposed. As if they were seeing beyond his body. As if they could see straight into his soul.
"T-the plan was…" His voice trembled, cold sweat running down his back. "to kill you first." His eyes moved nervously between Isagi and Makima. "And then start killing the other Devil Hunters, the main target is a blond brat… I think his name was Denji."
Isagi did not react externally. But his eyes changed slightly. Makima, on the other hand, stepped a little closer. Her presence became heavier. Colder.
"Why is he specifically their target?" she asked, lowering her voice slightly.
It was soft, but dangerous. The yakuza swallowed again, now visibly more nervous.
"I-I don't know…" he replied quickly. "They didn't tell us anything, the only ones who know are the group that went after him, along with the leader…" His breathing was irregular. He didn't want to be there anymore. "I… I'm part of team C." he continued, almost tripping over his own words. "Until we give the signal, the other teams won't start the operation…"
He paused. He looked at Makima. Then at the gun.
"They have to confirm your death first."
"So until you give the confirmation, they won't do anything?"
Isagi frowned slightly, processing the information. That… that was bad. He could feel the pieces beginning to move differently from what he remembered. If Katana-man and Akane's attack didn't happen the way it should, everything would change.
Denji and Power possibly wouldn't meet Kishibe. The Gun Devil fragments that group had would remain in their hands. And the mission to find him would be delayed.
The entire flow of the story was beginning to shake. He glanced toward Makima. She was already thinking. She always was.
"I'll leave him to you." he finally said, releasing the yakuza without ceremony. "I know you'll be able to make him sing like a little bird."
Without waiting for an answer, Isagi turned and began running through the carriage, his footsteps echoing against the metallic floor as he moved toward the back.
He passed into the next carriage without stopping. And then another. Until he reached the end. He looked up.
There it was. The emergency exit on the roof.
Without slowing down, he jumped and, with a direct kick, struck the hatch.
The door flew open, deforming instantly as it burst outward. Isagi propelled himself and came out to the exterior. The wind hit his face directly. Strong and Cold.
The train had already left the tunnel a while ago, and now the landscape stretched rapidly around him, the open sky above.
He stood firm on the roof of the train, his clothes whipping violently from the speed.
"Damn…" he muttered, letting out a small smile. "I've always wanted to do something like this, stand on top of a train." He looked ahead, the horizon stretching outward. "Though it would be more epic if there was a fight."
He sighed lightly. A shame there wasn't a rooftop fight.
He jumped. In midair, he quickly brought his hands together, forming a shadow with the silhouette of wings.
The shadow beneath him deformed. It expanded. And from it emerged Nue.
The enormous owl appeared with a powerful flap of its wings, intercepting him in midair. Isagi landed precisely on its back, holding on as the creature spread its wings and rose powerfully into the sky.
The wind changed. Now it was freedom. Speed. Height.
Nue cut through the sky, quickly moving away from the train.
Meanwhile, inside the carriage.
Makima silently watched as Isagi moved away, riding that enormous winged creature that disappeared into the distance at great speed. Her eyes followed his figure until it became a small dot.
She slowly turned toward the yakuza.
Now… the man was scared.
There was no trace of that earlier arrogance. His breathing was irregular, his eyes trembled slightly, and his body seemed stiff, as if he didn't know whether to run or stay.
But there was nowhere to go.
He was alone with her.
Makima approached without hurry, her soft steps barely echoing against the carriage floor. She raised her hand and gently placed it on the man's head.
The contact was light. But enough.
She gave him a small, almost kind smile.
With her other hand, she took the walkie-talkie that one of the corpses was still holding, her fingers becoming slightly stained with the blood that had not yet finished cooling.
She extended it toward the yakuza.
"Take it."
The man obeyed immediately, almost automatically.
And then.
Makima used her power.
The change was subtle but clear. The yakuza's eyes lost focus, his mind clouded. His expression emptied completely, as if all his emotions had been suddenly switched off.
Makima lowered her voice slightly, leaning just a bit closer to him.
"I order you to tell them you did it… that you completed the objective."
Her tone was not loud. It was not threatening.
But it was absolute.
The man nodded obediently and without questioning took the communicator with steady hands, pressed the button, and spoke with a completely monotone voice, devoid of any emotion.
"This is team C… begin the operation."
He released the button. Static sound filled the silence for a second before disappearing.
And with that, everything was sealed.
Across different points in the city, several yakuza disguised as civilians received the message. Men and women mixed among ordinary people waiting.
Waiting for that signal.
The beginning.
The operation to obtain the heart of the Chainsaw Devil was about to begin.
And Makima did not seem worried.
Not at all.
Her eyes lifted slightly, as if she could see beyond the train, beyond the city.
After all, Isagi had already gone.
And she was certain of something.
He would be able to deal with them.
This also served her.
Because she had learned something important.
Isagi always showed something new.
And she wanted to see it all.
---
End of the chapter.