Chapter Nine
Two weeks, later
"Stop moving around and let me eat you, little shit!"
"Uh… How about a no."
Multiple appendages shot out from a multistory-sized Kraken seeking Kishibe at bullet speeds, but with a few flips and body tilts, the Hunter nimbly dodged each of the Devil's attempts with contemptuous ease.
'… This isn't it.'
A wordless sigh escaped his lips as his hand flashed a silver line with a fountain of blood instantly spurting from the Devil's now missing limbs.
"Aaaaargh…! You… Damn fucking Hunter."
"Thanks for the compliment… Hah."
Upon landing on an opposing building, Kishibe turned to regard the Devil with disappointment in his eyes.
"You know? When I was told that my people were having trouble with a Devil extermination, I thought maybe they were facing some Uber Devil and dropped by to lend a hand… But I guess the Commission is taking anyone these days if a well-trained Devil Hunter can't take care of a Squid Devil."
"Squ-Squid?!"
The monster stuttered in outrage as its other appendages went up and down the building Kishibe was on. Even the sight of the collapsed edifice wasn't enough to calm its anger.
"I'm the fucking Devil of the sea! The Octopus Devil! I'm not some fucking Squid!"
For a moment, it seemed that the battle was decided in the Devil's favor when a cool, gruff voice replied from below.
"… Eh, that means you're of THAT kind."
Kishibe held his chin and nodded in self-confirmation.
"Sorry about that. I had grilled squid the other day, and seeing you reminded me of them… But then again, those tentacles paired with that big mug of yours could mean always something else, though."
The look on the Devil's face was one of pure gold as the Hunter discreetly wished he had a camera on him to commemorate its look for posterity's sake.
"I'll kill you…" The Devil's form shook as it growled, "I swear I'll fucking grind your bones and make you eat it, human!"
"Eh~ how does that work?"
"Graaaaggh!"
"How rude. Well, excuse for asking."
"Dieeeee…!"
"Whoa! Now that's the spirit!" Kishibe clapped his hands with an animated expression on his face, "Make me feel that sensation I felt that day!"
"DAMN YOU!"
Tentacles in their tens, hundreds—enough to cloud the Hunter's view—went up and dropped with the force of a tumultuous hailstorm, wrecking up buildings and destroying the streets, but none could so much as touch Kishibe.
With a flick, two knives whistled through the air and cut the closest appendages as the Hunter, with a running start, hopped onto a car and took to the air.
Each of the tentacles served as a platform as the Strongest Hunter sharply exhaled and became a humanoid storm of slashes, cutting away any of the Devil's arms that got close.
The Devil, with a cry, flinched away and took a deep breath, prompting Kishibe to raise a brow in deliberation.
'Hmm? It called itself an Octopus, didn't it? So that means…'
Suddenly, an inky deluge obscured his vision.
'It's porn ink next, then.'
Sighing, the Hunter's body tensed up—and blurred in a burst of speed.
If it were the Kishibe of two weeks ago, such an attack would have prompted him to retreat and employ one of his Devil Contracts to deal with the annoyance.
But he was different now.
For the SENSATION he felt that day had rewritten everything about him down to his DNA.
The Hunter closed his eyes as he didn't need them to know where the next attack would come from: his newly enhanced senses could see the World in a way it never could before.
But that wasn't all…
Hackles raised and body poised in an aerodynamic form, Kishibe drew his knives across each other in a slashing motion and focused on WHAT he felt that day.
… … … FEAR.
"… …!"
A cool, indescribable chill ran through his spine.
"Hah!"
The sound that followed was akin to a fired mortar as the torrent violently exploded, and a gigantic hole was torn through the Octopus Devil.
A black rain fell soon after.
It was an instant kill.
"Y-You-You… Monster."
The Octopus Devil whimpered as it crashed down, defeated.
"Monster? Monster… Monster, huh."
Kishibe stood over the Devil's defeated form as his knife absentmindedly tapped his shoulder, not minding the black drizzle that slowly coated his form.
"Once I would have claimed that title with my chest puffed and with a cool line to go with it. Now I realized that I'm no monster at all… A monster inspires fear rather than receives it. Heh, must be why I never feared you bastards. But it's not like Fear is a bad thing either way…"
The Hunter trailed off as he took in the macabre scenery of flesh bits and already thickening blood; they were the casualties who were once civilians and Devil Hunters—now unrecognizable lumps of flesh.
Everything considered, the Octopus Devil was one strong bastard—not so tough Kishibe couldn't have been able to handle it on his own—but strong enough that he would have had to TRY harder if he were to neutralize it to this extent.
Maybe it was due to that soul-enriching experience that opened his eyes to see that there were still limits for the Hunter to climb and overcome, but he could now confidently conclude after this fight that he was at least 40% stronger than before.
Something he had never thought possible in the first place.
Kishibe had thought he had reached the limits of what can be achieved through pure human grit both physically and mentally, but the kind of ease he has been having when exterminating Devils the past few days shows that he still has ways to go in exploring the potential of the Human body.
Truthfully speaking, what happened wasn't anything special; it wasn't some ultimate skill or special ability that all those manga protagonist used to have as a hidden ace—it was something the Hunter hadn't bothered to weaponize; a power gained when one has to choose to either FIGHT or FLIGHT; the loosing of self to ones baser instincts when faced with a precarious situation.
If Kishibe were to give a name to this new power, it would be HYSTERICAL STRENGTH.
'Sounds original enough.' The Hunter wirily thought to himself.
"Monsters would always exist on both sides; be it Humans or Devils. But the question remains the same in the end; what are we gonna do about it?"
For Kishibe, the answer was clear; even if it would take his entire lifetime, he would take back his position as the Strongest Hunter by defeating that bastard.
'Whatever it takes.'
Sighing, the Hunter regarded the Octopus Devil.
"As for you, my Devil pal, you're gonna be coming with me to one special place."
"Wha-what?"
"No need to get all excited. You seem to be a chill guy so I figure rather than simply sending you back to Hell all so that you can come back another time, I can use you to appease the dickheads above with fresh and—in time—willing Public Servant."
"… …"
With a smile that certainly did not look benevolent, Kishibe said.
"So how about it, Octo-chan; wanna come work for the Government?"
ᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥ
"Makima-san, the Directors are ready to receive you."
Eyes widened by a centimeter as she regarded the middle-aged man with a nod.
"Thank you. Now go wait in the lobby. I'll come fetch you when I'm done."
The Control Devil watched as Inukari-san—her chauffeur—walked away after a quick bow and then turned to face the door as she drew in a quick breath.
Lately, she's been having some trouble controlling her thoughts and actions, and while it hasn't hampered her duties as of yet, the fact that the Control Devil, a living concept of CONTROL, isn't in command of herself was to simply put, humiliating.
'But…' Makima's cheeks tinged red, 'It's that Devil's fault…'
Who was he?
Where had he come from?
Why hasn't she heard of him until now?
And…
Thump… Thump… Thump…
Gripping her chest, the Control Devil once again repeated the breathing exercise—an action she never considered she would be doing—and straightened up her form.
She still wasn't aware of the kind of Devil he is, and that should have been an impossibility considering the extent of her mental capabilities.
There was a possibility that he was a newly incarnated Devil, but then again, the World hasn't had any catastrophic events to conceive a Devil that powerful—which then brings up another tantalizing possibility: he was a Transcendental Devil.
The power he wielded, the ease coupled with his demeanor reminded the Control Devil of a few asshats she was acquainted with back in Hell… Although Makima amended that he was more pleasing to the eye.
'Hmm?" Makima tilted in bewilderment, "Why did I have to correct myself for that…?"
That thought merely lasted for a few seconds before she shrugged to herself.
'Oh well…'
That aside, Makima has already gone through all the ancient and forbidden tomes hidden within the most secret of places at the Hunters Commission HQ. With blessings from above, she has exhausted all possible networks, even took to the frontlines earlier than planned to look into the Devils that followed him from Hell that day.
Stirring up memories lost in whatever form was certainly within her power.
Unfortunately, all the Control Devil got for her troubles were blanks and more blanks.
'Am I losing my touch this early in the game?' Makima wondered, 'Or am I going at this the wrong way…'
There was a piece to the puzzle Makima feels like she is missing—an angle where she could look from and easily deduce this disturbing phenomena that is the mysterious Devil and why thinking about him always makes her feel… Restless.
"How grating."
Despite the current frustration bubbling within Makima, there was also something else 'blossoming' within her.
She couldn't figure out a word to describe it—more like she never had the chance to experience such a feeling to start putting it in words.
And candidly speaking… She likes it.
Sighing, Makima's lips stretched a bit wider before she caught herself and promptly shrunk it back to optimal levels.
'This won't do at all.'
Facing the door, she then knocked once.
"Come in, Makima-kun."
With any further ado, the Control Devil walked in and stood before a few selects sited on a conference table—these people were amongst the scant few whose faces she couldn't forget.
"Now…" One of the Directors gestured at her, "You can begin with your report."
All thoughts of the intriguing Devil retreated far into the dark recesses of her mind as Makima was once again an instrument of the Government's will.
It was time to serve her country.
And…
ᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥ
"Hahaha! Hey Pochita, wait up!"
The boy who gasped out joyfully was noticeably younger than Akane; thin and scrawny due to malnutrition, with the main noticeable trait being his angular, sharp teeth coupled with blond hair, which made him seem like a thug.
Two weeks ago, at this time of the day, the boy would be out in the woods or at abandoned neighborhoods working, running, and fighting to pay off the debt his deadbeat parents owed the Yakuzas.
If he could not make the quota—yes, he'd learned that word—for the week, he would be beaten like rag or in some special cases, pissed and burnt on. Hunger was a familiar companion as he would have to make do with grass and insects or, on lucky days, garbage food as there was no one to give him something to eat.
If it hadn't been for his only best friend in the whole wide world, Pochita, the boy was sure that those nasty pricks would have done as they had promised and cut him up to sell his organs.
He couldn't help wondering why anyone would want his insides—they were red and nasty.
In any case, life was hard… But now it isn't anymore.
"Hehehe…"
Just the thought was enough to bring a smile to his face.
The boy could still remember that day like it was yesterday—even though it's already been more than a week since that fateful day.
It was after he had spent an entire night fighting the Onion Devil—and sheesh was that bastard tough—and was ready to go inform his dickhead bosses that he was done with their job… Only to enter a slaughterhouse.
Thump… Thump… Thump…
He still remembers his chest thumping like hell.
Strewn around were corpses staining the compound in thick blood. An observatory glance shows they were hacked limb from limb, with the few faces showing that it hadn't been a peaceful process.
For a moment, the boy regretted not bringing Pochita with him, but then again, he was afraid of what the Yakuzas would do to his friend if they saw him.
Nevertheless, he ignored the macabre scenery and ambled on. His reason for doing so hadn't been for some selfless reason or anything of that sort; he merely needed to confirm one thing.
What had happened to his dickhead bosses?
The answer was given as soon as he had walked into the sitting room saturated in the stench of bitter iron and was met with a scene right out of a horror movie.
On the dining table were the Yakuzas with a certain old foggy placed at the head. Their heads had been cleanly ripped off and placed on plates before them as if beckoning their headless bodies to eat a 'blood-rich' meal.
"… …"
The boy struggled to come up with words to describe how he felt back then.
It wasn't DISGUST, as he was used to seeing way worse.
It wasn't ANGER because he had no reason to be angry.
It wasn't even SATISFACTION even though they got what they deserved.
What the boy immediately felt at the sight of their corpses was RELIEF.
"Hah… I'm free."
He was free to never come back to this chocking house. He was free to start saving money to buy more food to eat and blankets to weather the cold. He was free to stop risking his life fighting Devils for money he would never use.
He was free to live… Free to dream.
"Hahahahahaha…! I always knew you shitheads would be the first to die before I do! I hope you rot in hell with the Devils!"
Chuckling, the boy took a single step in retreat to leave this house forever—when a voice halted his tracks.
⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙
"Whoa, talk about being pent up. In any case… Urgh, I give that idiot free reign for 30 minutes, and he makes a mess… Eh, I'll just get those stooges to clean and wrap up the loose ends… As for you, kid… Huh? Now I look at you, it hits the fact that I ain't at the right time to enjoy canon madness."
⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙
What came from the shadows had a human form, a bit too tall with horns and pale white skin with jutting horns on his skull-like face. The gaping hole in his chest revealed—unsurprisingly—that what stood before him wasn't human.
It was a Devil.
Despite his glowing green eyes and menacing form, there was something about the Devil that made the boy not to run like he would do when dealing with the Devil.
… Maybe because he reminded him of Pochita.
⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙
"… Okay, I know I shouldn't be asking this, but why are you not scared of me?"
"… Because you remind me of my dog."
"… … Dog? Pfft... Bwahahahahaha…! Yes, this is the character I know and love!"
"Huh?"
"Hehe… No need to think much about it, kid."
⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙
The Devil walked towards him, knelt, and extended both his palms revealing…
⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙
"I know it's a bit sudden for you, kid. But I want you to make a choice here and now…"
"Are those… Candies?"
"Yep. Couldn't use drugs, so I figured candies would serve as an alternative. Now, here's the thing. I've known you for quite a while now—your dreams, wishes and I also know that for all your infinite potential, you're a kid with simple dreams. So I'll offer you 2 options… Here's a blue candy; take it, and you'll have a life of stability. You can go to school, have a girlfriend if possible, eat 3 ample meals a day… Heh, bath and shit whenever you like. You'll have a life far from anything that'll threaten you. I guarantee it. In exchange, I'll be taking your little chainsaw with me…
… … Take the red; and you'll still be able to eat, shit, and whatever. But you'll never be safe. People will be after you and or, rather, your little chainsaw friend. Humans will want to use you. Devils will want to kill you. You won't be safe. You'll never be safe… I won't claim to be able to protect you despite how I may seem. I can't even guarantee you'll live to see 40. The most I can promise is to avenge your death."
⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙
Even now, most of what the Devil said back then flew past the boy's mind.
Choices? Life of stability? Death?
It was confusing, and for someone who hadn't attended elementary it didn't make much sense.
What he did understand was that his friend was in danger; the one who stood by him through thick and thin. When the sun was beating down his skin or rain was slipping through the cracks of the thatched house. When his stomach was biting and gnawing because of the hunger…
It was Pochita and no one else.
So the boy's choice was obvious.
⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙
"So that's your choice… Still, I gotta ask. Are you sure about this? This isn't something you can back out from. You may be 7, but you more than anyone else understand the difference between freedom and hardship. So why?"
"I… I like food. The ones on those colorful papers. I like sleeping whenever I want. I like a house that doesn't drip in rain and heats in the dark. I like not being beaten. I like being free… But if I can't have Pochita with me then… Then I don't want any of it. I don't care about living longer if I don't have my friend. I don't care about anything else. It's always been me and Pochita, and even though I like the blue candy, if I don't have Pochita… Then I don't want it."
"Heh… Alright, kid, take it. But remember, this is your choice and your life now. There are no backcies. I'll help you however I can, but the rest is up to you… Denji."
⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙⸙
Denji laughed as he caught Pochita and lifted him with a twirl.
"It feels like I'm in a dream. We live in a house that's much bigger and better than those Yakuza assholes. We don't need to go looking in the garbage for food because what we eat now is 1 million times better. Our clothes smell nice and they even plan to take me to school starting from next week. Best of all…"
He tightly hugged Pochita, who huffed and licked him.
"I still have you by my side… Yeah, I still remember what Akuma-san said back then. I'm not an idiot, ya know. But I promise I'll get stronger, and I won't let anyone take you away from me. This time, we'll both be protecting each other and will rip apart all the bad guys that're after you, right, Pochita?"
"Arf!"
Pochita's affirmative bark was enough to brighten his heart and once again fill Denji with determination.
"Alright, kids, enough playing around." The voice of a familiar Devil called out from the living room. "It's time to come start your training-arc."
Training-arc, yeah, that Devil sure is strange.
"Yeah, I'm coming!" Denji he looked down at Pochita, "Come on boy, let's get going."
Come, Devils and come humans—nothing will stop this Human-Devil duo from living the life they deserve.
Author's Note,
The next arc is gonna be a time-skip; it's still gonna be before cannon. But now we're gonna be seeing the other casts from the Manga, who get up Aki and Himeno mains. Your champions won't be hiding in the backseat for long.