At that time, across the ocean.
In the courtyard of a villa somewhere in America, a grand party was underway.
The Nakiri Family, Soma, Tadokoro Megumi, Ryoko, and other players from the Food Wars! World had all rolled up their sleeves and were busy cooking up a feast in the courtyard.
In the courtyard gathered Mrs. Yukinoshita, the Aizono family of three, Yui, Yumiko, Ai, Kotonoha... It could be said that apart from the Kudo Family, Saionji Sekai, and Ito Makotou, almost all the players who had crossed into the Chainsaw Man World were present.
Oh, not quite. The Yukinoshita sisters and Hiratsuka Shizuka, who had been traveling with them, also hadn't come.
Originally, Makoto had only planned to take Leonora and Alice to meet Soe, so that their family of three could have a small reunion after so many years.
But on second thought, since they were having a gathering anyway, why not have everyone get together?
So Makoto gathered all the players he had a good relationship with here.
Incidentally, this was the base of Utaha and Megumi's team.
After leaving Japan, they had come to America, used the abilities they had learned in the Naruto World to kill the original owner of this villa, and taken over.
With the Transformation Technique, such a thing was easy to accomplish.
Honestly, with the Transformation Technique, one could do almost anything in the ordinary world.
"Th-This is... isn't it a bit bad..."
Upon learning that Utaha and the others had obtained the house this way, Ran, who was kind-natured and even somewhat naive, couldn't help but whisper to her teammates.
"Don't worry. We investigated thoroughly."
Now twenty-five years old and exuding the charm of a mature woman, Utaha took a small sip of red wine. Every smile and glance revealed a seductiveness she hadn't possessed in high school.
"The mother of the woman who owned this villa once embezzled the severance pay of hundreds of laid-off workers, causing hundreds of them to freeze and starve to death during the winter. After her mother was imprisoned, she fled with the stolen money from China to America, even writing songs to celebrate. Giving her a quick death was already merciful."
Hearing this explanation, Ran felt a little better, though she still found it hard to accept such methods.
Ran looked at Makoto, whose demeanor had grown increasingly mature, and couldn't help but speak: "Sensei, Shinichi..."
Before she could finish, Eri covered her daughter's mouth from behind and whispered a warning: "Ran, don't mention that person's name."
Eri's feelings towards Makoto weren't particularly favorable, but they were far better than her feelings towards Shinichi.
Especially now, to return to the real world, they had to rely on him.
She had to eliminate any behavior that might offend Makoto.
"Makoto, is it really okay for us to have a party here?"
Yui leaned close to Makoto and asked in a small voice.
It had to be said, she was starting to look more and more like her mother, Mrs. Yuigahama.
If she let down the bun on her head, they would be almost identical.
And not just Yui. Ran, Eriri, Alice, these former young girls, had all, after nine years, grown to increasingly resemble their own mothers.
"It's fine. The Control Devil is strong, but her sphere of influence is ultimately limited to Japan. Besides, I used the Flying Thunder God Technique to bring you all here. She can't detect it."
Hearing Makoto's confident answer, Yui finally felt at ease.
"Oh dear, we've run out of wine. Who wants to go out and buy some with me?"
Just then, Soe, who had been drinking quite a bit, noticed that the alcohol supply was exhausted.
Soma immediately chimed in: "I'll go too. I need some for the red wine beef I'm making anyway."
"U-Um, Yukihira-kun, let me go..."
Kinoshita Kazuya interrupted. Ever since being selected as a player, his life hadn't been much different from his real-world existence.
Working odd jobs to get by, waiting for Makoto to clear the dungeon so they could return to the real world.
After coming to this world, he had managed to join the men's group thanks to the sympathy of the Food Wars! main characters.
But compared to Hachiman and his 'wife', who had superpowers, or Soma and others who were skilled cooks, there wasn't much he could do.
So he tried to take care of whatever odd jobs came up.
Hearing this, Soma didn't refuse. He nodded and said, "Then I'll leave it to you."
Two people still weren't enough. Finally, Mr. Spencer, who usually kept a low profile, also went out with them to help.
The party continued.
As the one connecting all the players, Makoto was undoubtedly the star of the party.
Pochita, meanwhile, was passed around among the women who had evolved from 'older sisters' into 'big sisters', endlessly petted.
The mix of perfume and lotion scents from their bodies was so overwhelming it nearly made him dizzy.
Many of the women cast covetous glances at Makoto.
Over the past few years, Makoto would basically use the Flying Thunder God Technique to come to them every few days, so they no longer had to rely on their own hands to relieve their loneliness.
Today, everyone had been drinking a bit, and their feelings were even harder to suppress.
Just then, Eriri rubbed her slightly dizzy head and muttered softly, "Why aren't Dad and the others back yet..."
Sayuri, who had been chatting with the other mothers, also snapped to attention: "Oh, right. They've been gone a long time, just to buy wine."
"They didn't get robbed, did they? This is America after all..." Kasumigaoka's father worriedly said.
After coming to America, he had become completely disillusioned with this 'father' country.
After all, it was nothing like the news reports!
Many times, if his daughter wasn't with him, he didn't dare go out alone.
"I should have gone instead of Dad..." Eriri said, her face full of worry.
Just then, three familiar figures appeared at the courtyard entrance.
It was Soe and the other two returning from buying wine.
"Sorry, sorry. The mall was crowded. We're late." Soe explained with a smile.
Seeing the three return safely, Leonora, Sayuri, and the others finally breathed sighs of relief.
Just then, Makoto suddenly spoke up.
"Did you know? Energy flows within a person's body. And someone possessed by a Devil has a completely different energy flow than an ordinary person."
Hearing this, everyone turned to look at Makoto in unison.
Megumi frowned slightly. "Makoto, why are you suddenly talking about this?"
Makoto smiled lightly. "Megumi, in the end, Sensor-type Ninjas determine an enemy's position and identity by sensing their Chakra. But people in this world don't have Chakra, so a Sensor Ninja's abilities are useless. However, the Sharingan can see it."
"What exactly are you talking about? Is the party over?" Kazuya put down the alcohol he was holding and asked with a smile.
Seeing that smile, the expressions of Soma and the other men in the group suddenly became odd.
Because in their memory, Kazuya had always been a timid, submissive person. He wouldn't dare smile so cheerfully.
"In other words, I can tell if someone is an imposter, even if they use a Devil's power to change their appearance."
Hearing this, the faces of the three who had just returned from buying wine drastically changed.
The next moment, before they could react, a giant skeletal hand suddenly reached out from the void and grabbed Kazuya tightly.
"Mr. Nishikawa, what are you doing?!"
Tadokoro Megumi, Ryoko, and others who were roommates with him exclaimed, their faces changing.
The next second, Makoto's Susanoo exerted force with a crunch, twisting Kazuya into a pulpy mess.
"Aaaahhh! Aaahhh! Aaaahhh—!!"
Seeing someone familiar die so brutally before their eyes, the more timid Tadokoro Megumi, Yoshino Yuki, and others screamed in terror.
But what shocked them even more followed immediately.
Kazuya's body had been twisted into pulp by the Susanoo, leaving only a head. Then, his facial skin began to peel away like a snake shedding its skin, revealing a completely unfamiliar man's face.
"H-He's not Kazuya!?" Soma exclaimed, his eyes wide.
Instantly, all the players' gazes shot towards Soe and Mr. Spencer, who had returned with this imposter.
"Run!"
Soe shouted, and the two turned to flee.
But this time, Makoto didn't even need to act himself.
Utaha and Ran, both now in their mature forms, rushed out simultaneously.
The former threw a shuriken wrapped in Chakra Threads, which arced around Soe. With a flick of her hands, she bound him tightly in an instant.
Ran, with even more explosive speed, closed in and executed a Konoha Whirlwind, kicking the other's ankle hard and knocking him to the ground.
Then, using a restraint technique from the Gentle Way of Judo, she pinned him securely.
Makoto walked over slowly, his eyes already transformed into Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan.
"Remove your pathetic disguises."
Instantly, the pupils of the two men glazed over, and their facial skin, like the fake Kazuya's, peeled away automatically, revealing the faces of two strangers.
"Wh-Who are they?!" Kogoro exclaimed in shock.
Makoto stared at the two for a moment, then slowly spoke: "The Immortal Brothers."
"The Immortal Brothers? What's that?" Yotsuba asked, puzzled.
Makoto explained calmly: "Famous civilian Devil Hunters in America. They contracted with the Skin Devil, allowing them to peel off the faces of the dead and disguise themselves as others."
This principle was quite similar to Orochimaru's Disguise Technique.
Hearing the words 'peel off the faces of the dead', Alice, Eriri, and others' pupils contracted sharply.
"Th-That means... F-Father is already..."
Eriri stumbled back two steps, her legs giving way beneath her. Fortunately, Megumi was there to catch her.
Kogoro let out a long, silent sigh of relief, feeling secretly fortunate.
'Good thing I hadn't gone with them to buy wine.'
'Otherwise, I might have been the one dead.'
Counting it up, among all the fathers present, the only one still alive was Kogoro.