Players scattered across the world clenched their fists, their hearts heavy.
"Please be safe..."
Mrs. Yukinoshita clasped her hands together, pressing them against her chest, silently praying.
Mrs. Yuigahama and the Mochi Group, who had also witnessed the Gun Devil's terror firsthand thirteen years ago, held their breath, their nerves taut.
"Huh~ Is Uncle going to fight the Gun Devil?"
Reze lay lazily on the table, her tone indifferent.
Yumiko frowned at her, her voice sharp: "You! Don't you care at all?"
She genuinely disliked this woman Makoto had left with them.
She couldn't quite explain why. Perhaps it was because she felt indignant for her friend Yui, or at least that's what Yumiko told herself.
'Yui had waited for over a decade, and yet that bastard Makoto would rather chase after new women in another world than even look her way. Was he even human?'
But Yumiko had also remained chaste for many years.
Lately, when alone, the frequency of having to take care of her own needs was increasing.
Reze lay on the dining table like a lazy cat, not even lifting her eyelids: "I don't care. If Uncle dies, I'll just die too."
Everyone in the room was stunned by this statement.
'She was that devoted?'
Yui stared blankly at Reze, unable to stop herself from asking inwardly: 'Could I do the same?'
Meanwhile, Makoto was sitting in the luxury single apartment arranged for him by Public Safety, watching the news report about the Gun Devil on television.
Suddenly, his phone rang.
"Hello."
As soon as he answered, Makima's voice came through.
"Makoto-kun, we failed. The Gun Devil escaped."
Makoto was expressionless: "My turn to act?"
"No." Makima's voice carried a strange undertone. "If I'm not mistaken, he will come to you on his own. Whatever you do, do not fight the Gun Devil, becau—"
Knock, knock, knock—
Urgent and heavy knocking suddenly interrupted her words.
Makoto turned and walked towards the door.
On the phone, Makima's voice came again, more urgently: "Makoto-kun, are you listening? Do not fight the Gun Devil. His current state..."
"Chainsaw-sama! Something feels wrong outside!"
Beam, Teddy Devil, and the other Devils all appeared at once, their faces twisted in terror.
But Makoto didn't stop. He reached out and directly opened the door.
Standing outside was none other than the person he trusted most… Ishigami Yu.
But unlike the usual look of reverence he always gave him, like Hinamori Momo looking up at Aizen, this time Yu had his head slightly lowered, his full face barely visible.
The upper half of his face had been completely replaced by a grotesque gun barrel. His arms had transformed into two massive sniper rifles. He radiated a chilling murderous intent.
"Waaaaah~!"
The Devils behind Makoto… Beam, the Animal Brothers, collapsed to the ground, their legs giving way.
"Chainsaw-sama! Th, that's… that's the Gun Devil!"
Click—
The harsh sound of a round being chambered echoed.
The Gun Devil-man possessing Yu slowly raised his arm, the muzzle almost pressed against Makoto's forehead.
Bang—!!!
A deafening roar exploded.
A shot to the head.
The terrifying force blasted a massive hole straight through the entire apartment building.
It was less like a gun and more like a cannon.
Nearby residents, startled by the earth-shattering noise, rushed out of their homes in panic to see what had happened.
What they saw was the Public Safety's apartment building with a huge hole blown right through the middle.
"Wh, what happened!?"
Aki, who lived downstairs, also hurried out of his house.
Yesterday, he had been preparing for the final battle against the Gun Devil when Himeno suddenly showed up and said she was withdrawing from the mission.
Regarding his partner's choice, Aki didn't say much, just nodded in understanding.
He understood that Himeno was different from him. She had joined Public Safety simply for a stable job.
Then Himeno poured him a farewell drink. Aki didn't suspect anything and drank it all, then fell unconscious until now.
Thud—
Aki had just run out of the stairwell and hadn't even looked up.
Another sound of something heavy hitting the ground came.
He looked down and his pupils contracted.
A headless corpse was standing firmly in front of him.
No, it wasn't a corpse… it was still standing, even moving.
"Is, is that Nishikawa-san?"
Aki swallowed, his voice trembling.
Even without a head, he still recognized the figure by its build.
He saw the headless body raise its right hand, reach into its collar, grab the ring, and yank it hard.
Brumm—!!!
The iconic roar of a chainsaw starting up resounded through the sky.
A new head instantly grew from Makoto's severed neck. The skin on his hands burst apart as two high-speed rotating chainsaws burst out, buzzing loudly.
"Nishikawa-san, is there an enemy?!" Aki shouted in alarm.
"Stand down, Aki."
Makoto's tone was calm. "You don't want to die, do you?"
Before Aki could respond, a dark shadow descended from the sky, crashing heavily to the ground.
With a rumble, the earth cracked, and fragments of stone flew everywhere.
Aki looked up and was instantly stunned speechless.
A human body, but with a gun barrel covered in eyes growing from its forehead, its arms transformed into heavy machine guns… undoubtedly, a human possessed by a Devil.
And that aura… it was the object of his hatred, the Gun Devil.
In normal times, Aki would have already drawn his sword and charged.
But this time, he stood frozen in place, not daring to move.
Because he could clearly see that the body possessed by the Gun Devil was none other than Makoto's trusted right-hand man… Ishigami Yu.
"Wh, what's going on... Wh, what the hell is going on!?"
Aki was completely bewildered.
'Why was the Gun Devil here?'
'And why did it possess Ishigami-san?'
'Was Ishigami-san... still alive?'
Countless questions exploded in his mind, throwing him into utter confusion.
Click—
The sound of a round being chambered echoed again.
The Gun Devil-man slowly raised its gun, aiming at Makoto.
Bang—!
Another bullet, comparable to a cannon shell, roared out.
Makoto, transformed into the Chainsaw Devil, swung his chainsaw to block.
Boom—!
His entire arm was instantly blown to pieces. Even several buildings behind him were directly pierced through by that single bullet.
Seeing this, Aki's face turned pale as paper.
'No... it's too strong.'
'The Chainsaw Devil's power had been weakened too much.'
Over the years, under the heavy promotion of Public Safety and the media, Makoto had become a national-level idol Devil Hunter, enjoying immense popularity among the public.
Especially popular among young women.
For an ordinary person, this was an honor, but for Makoto, who had contracted with the Chainsaw Devil, it was a fatal weakness.
A Devil's power comes from human fear. How strong could a Devil that is loved, worshipped, and not feared by humans possibly be?
The Gun Devil on the opposite side was the exact opposite.
After two large-scale massacres, the fear and power it had accumulated had reached an unimaginable level.
"Chainsaw-sama! My blood, take it!"
Beam leaped up from the ground, baring sharp fangs like the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, and bit down hard on his own arm.
Blood sprayed like a fountain from his severed wrist.
Beam swung with all his might, splattering the hot blood onto Makoto's severed arm.
Brumm—
The next moment, a new arm grew and regenerated from Makoto's stump at a visible speed.
"Nishikawa-san, retreat!"
Aki shouted anxiously.
Even if his body recovered, the gap in power between them was already immense. Continuing to fight would only mean certain death.
"Aki, who do you think I am?"
Makoto's tone was calm. The Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan in his eyes spun wildly. His gaze swept around, and he thought inwardly:
'Makima, you're watching, aren't you?'
'Fine, let's see who laughs last.'
"Roar—!!!"
An earth-shattering roar exploded.
Susanoo, manifested in the world.
Unlike before, the head of Makoto's Susanoo now took the form of a giant mechanical chainsaw. A massive, fearsome saw blade stood vertically on its forehead. It had completely merged with the Chainsaw Devil.
After obtaining the power of the Chainsaw Devil, his own power had undergone a complete transformation.
It wasn't the Susanoo of Fugaku. It was the Susanoo exclusively belonging to Makoto.