Chainsaw Man: Mangekyo Sharingan

Chapter 72: Chapter 72: Reze’s Hesitation (EC)

The operation had only just begun when Captain Somal saw the Corn Devil’s mouth inhale as if it were charging an attack. Thinking of the fact that the Corn Devil had eaten a piece of the Gun Devil’s flesh, he immediately had an ominous feeling.

"It’s going to attack! Everyone, be careful!"

Captain Somal shouted.

After hearing that, the members of Team 2 instantly became alert, but they had no way of predicting what kind of attack method the Corn Devil would use.

Even though the Corn Devil was already a devil recorded in Public Safety’s files, having appeared in other regions of the Soviet Union many years ago, its abilities back then had also been documented.

It did not possess any special abilities, and its strength was very weak. Its greatest destructive power was eating people with its mouth.

But back then, the Corn Devil did not possess any Gun Devil flesh. Now, not only had it returned to the human world, it had also been strengthened by a piece of the Gun Devil’s flesh. It was possible that it had mutated and gained some kind of special ability.

The next moment, the Corn Devil finished charging and spat countless "corn kernels" from its mouth.

These were not ordinary corn kernels. They were like fired bullets, with extremely strong lethality.

Their accuracy was not very high, but a wide-range barrage was not easy to dodge either.

Fortunately, Somal had already anticipated this. Using some unknown devil’s ability, he opened a barrier and blocked the "corn kernels" fired by the Corn Devil.

However, that barrier clearly could not hold for long. Gradually, cracks began to appear across its surface.

"Anyone with long-range attack methods, hurry up and attack the Corn Devil! I can’t hold this for long!"

As Captain Somal shouted, the team members with ranged attack methods had already used their devil powers.

The others observed the situation for the time being. Captain Somal wanted to avoid casualties as much as possible. If team members without ranged attack methods acted now, they would easily be injured by those bullet-like "corn kernels."

If they did not care about casualties, they could probably resolve the Corn Devil very quickly, but he was not willing to do that.

At that moment, someone used the Wolf Devil’s right claw. A huge wolf claw appeared out of thin air and attacked the Corn Devil ahead.

But a layer of tough corn leaves suddenly appeared on the Corn Devil’s body and blocked the Wolf Devil’s right claw. However, the Wolf Devil was no pushover either, and the corn leaves were at least destroyed.

Another person summoned the Wolf Devil’s head. This person did not have any outstanding facial features, but he was tall, broad, and powerfully built.

If the Fox Devil was obsessed with good looks, then the Wolf Devil’s special preference seemed to be strong men. It only allowed men who looked strong enough to use its head.

The Wolf Devil’s head bit off half of the Corn Devil’s body. The Corn Devil was quite large, mainly because eating the Gun Devil’s flesh had made it grow even larger. The Wolf Devil could not bite down the entire Corn Devil at once.

"Mm... Not bad. I’ll take half of its body."

After leaving those words behind, the Wolf Devil’s head disappeared.

Just as everyone in Team 2 felt that the Corn Devil should be just about dead, the half of its body that had been bitten off actually began to slowly grow back.

At that moment, more than half of the eyeballs on the Corn Devil’s body fell off on their own, then all gathered together. A mass of flesh made of countless eyeballs rushed toward the barrier as if it had its own consciousness.

At the same time, it rapidly swelled, looking as though it would soon expand until it exploded.

"Damn it!"

Captain Somal immediately sensed that things were bad.

The barrier was already close to shattering. Now there was no way it could withstand the explosion of this eyeball flesh bomb.

He suddenly regretted it. If he had let everyone attack together from the start, the Corn Devil definitely would not have been able to withstand it. There would have been injuries, but they would not have been too severe.

Now that the Corn Devil had used its killing move, the casualties would be even worse instead.

At that critical moment, just as the eyeball flesh bomb was about to explode, it suddenly vanished.

Almost no one noticed the spatial vortex that flashed by in an instant.

What... what was going on?

Captain Somal’s expression instantly froze, still locked in the grim look from the moment before.

The other team members also did not realize what had happened until they heard a sentence.

"I just barely made it in time, right?"

Only then did one of the members of Team 2 suddenly discover that someone had appeared beside him at some point. The sudden voice startled him so badly that his whole body trembled.

This person was the one Kotone Asaba had left a "coordinate" on in Captain Volkov’s office earlier. Before the operation began, Kotone had already planned to help Team 2 immediately after dealing with the Bear Devil.

However, everyone still did not understand what Kotone had done just now. Only Kotone knew that the eyeball flesh bomb had been transferred into the Kamui dimension, where it had already exploded.

Pochita was in his arms and would not be affected by the blast. Besides, he could freely control where the eyeball flesh bomb was transferred. Even if Pochita was inside the Kamui dimension, he would not be caught in it.

Kotone did not explain further. He would deal with the Corn Devil first.

Without another word, he started Pochita’s chainsaw engine and instantly teleported in front of the Corn Devil.

The Corn Devil’s outer skin was nowhere near as hard as the Black Bear Devil’s. Its most defensive corn leaves had also just been destroyed by the Wolf Devil. Kotone easily chopped the Corn Devil into pieces in a few moves.

No matter how strong the Corn Devil’s regenerative ability was, once it was dismembered, there was no coming back from that. Its corpse twitched a few times, then stopped moving.

"You... You’re Asaba from Team 1, aren’t you? How are things on Team 1’s side?"

After seeing Kotone clearly, Somal realized he was from Team 1 and could not help asking.

However, since this young man had the time to come over and help, Team 1 had most likely already dealt with the Black Bear Devil.

"The Black Bear Devil has already been successfully hunted. That’s why I was able to come support you."

Kotone explained.

"I knew it..."

Somal thought it over and felt deeply shocked.

This young man’s devil power was actually this strong. Not only had he arrived so quickly, he had also made the Corn Devil’s killing move disappear outright.

If not for this young man’s help, they definitely would have suffered serious casualties just now.

As the captain of Team 2, Somal did not understand the devil power of Kotone Asaba, who had just joined Team 1. What he had seen just now was also his first time witnessing Kotone’s ability.

Even Captain Volkov did not understand Kotone’s abilities very well.

For a special Devil Hunter like Kotone, who had come from Japan for international exchange, Moscow Public Safety kept his abilities confidential. Most likely, only a very small number of people, such as the leadership, knew the abilities he had displayed in Japan. The Soviet military, which had specifically investigated his abilities, did not count.

"By the way, that attack from the Corn Devil just now, how did you make that thing disappear?"

Somal was very curious and could not help asking.

"I wouldn’t exactly call it disappearing. I just transferred that thing away using my devil power."

Kotone explained.

"Oh...!"

Somal somewhat understood. It seemed that the devil this young man had contracted with was related to space. No wonder he appeared and vanished like a ghost.

"Thank you very much for your help..."

Somal was only halfway through speaking when Volkov’s voice suddenly came from the communication device.

"Damn it! Why is there another devil?! Nick, watch out!"

Kotone was slightly stunned. His brows gradually furrowed as he realized the situation was bad, and he immediately transferred himself back to Reze’s side.

Going back to when Kotone had just transferred over to Team 2, the members of Team 1 were handling the Black Bear Devil’s corpse.

Because of the Black Bear Devil’s body, it took them quite some effort to dig out a piece of the Gun Devil’s flesh from inside it.

This piece of Gun Devil flesh was very small. The Black Bear Devil’s own strength was already considerable. Even without the Gun Devil flesh, it would not have been easy to deal with. With such a small piece of flesh, it had only been made even more dangerous.

"I told you, didn’t I? Asaba could take care of this thing all by himself. Are you convinced now?"

Nick felt extremely vindicated and immediately mocked Berkolin beside him in return.

Berkolin’s expression looked a little ugly, and he did not say a word.

Yesterday, he had only felt that Nick, this reckless newbie, was talking nonsense. He had not expected Kotone Asaba to truly have that kind of strength.

They had not even had a chance to act just now before the Black Bear Devil had already been dealt with by Kotone alone.

That level of strength was a complete dimensional blow to them.

Volkov did not pay attention to the dispute between Nick and Berkolin. It was normal for team members to have minor conflicts with each other. As long as it did not become too obvious, he usually turned a blind eye.

Only Funi gave Nick a few quiet words of advice.

But at that moment, just as everyone had found the Gun Devil flesh inside the Black Bear Devil, Reze suddenly noticed that there was another devil in a certain direction.

"There’s more than one devil here!"

Reze immediately warned everyone.

The others naturally did not have senses as sharp as Reze’s, and her warning did not make them react immediately.

Boom!

The earth suddenly trembled as if there had been an earthquake. A massive devil rushed out from somewhere in the dense forest.

It was a Brown Bear Devil, and its body was even larger than the Black Bear Devil’s, yet its speed was shockingly fast.

The change happened far too suddenly. No one had expected that aside from the Black Bear Devil, there would also be a Brown Bear Devil. Of course, they had not completely relaxed their guard. They had been wary of whether other devils might appear nearby, but the Brown Bear Devil’s speed was simply too sudden and too fast.

Some people had no time to react, including Funi and Nick. Even worse, the Brown Bear Devil’s first target was Nick.

"You dare kill my mate!"

The Brown Bear Devil roared and slapped one paw toward Nick.

A Devil Hunter with as little experience as Nick was the most likely to freeze up when faced with such a sudden change. He stood there, completely stunned.

"Damn it! Why is there another devil?! Nick, watch out!"

Volkov shouted.

"Nick!"

Funi wanted to rush over and push Nick away, but it was already clearly too late. The distance of only a few steps felt unbearably far in that moment.

At that instant, Reze hesitated slightly.

That was because she had not yet fully broken free of her habitual way of thinking. In this kind of situation, she actually wanted to save him, but under absolute rationality, her subconscious still felt that she should not expose her identity as a Hybrid.

After years of training and influence from the Soviet military, she had long since developed a habit of absolute rational thinking. Even now, when she was no longer bound by the Soviet military, that habitual thinking was not so easy to erase.

Instinctively, she hesitated and did not transform into a Hybrid at the best possible moment.

Berkolin, who was closest to Nick, was also the only one with a chance to save Nick in time.

He barely hesitated at all. After snapping back to his senses, he immediately used his devil power. His entire body was strengthened, and he rammed into Nick with all his strength.

Nick was sent flying, rolling several times. Although he suffered some minor injuries, compared to being struck by the Brown Bear Devil’s paw, those small wounds were practically nothing.

Only then did Nick come back to his senses. He suddenly raised his head and discovered that Berkolin had knocked him away.

But forget Nick going over to save Berkolin, even Berkolin himself could no longer dodge.

He retreated as far back as he could, but the bear paw, carrying a violent gust of wind, instantly snapped both of his legs at the knees. Most of the flesh on his thighs was also smashed apart.

And that was after his body had been strengthened by devil power. Otherwise, his leg bones probably would have shattered outright, and his upper body would also have suffered severe internal injuries from the massive impact.

"Berkolin!"

As Nick shouted, the sound of an explosion suddenly came from a certain direction.

Bang!

At that moment, Reze raised her hand with a grim expression and pulled the pin on her neck, transforming into the Bomb Hybrid.

She had only hesitated for a brief moment before breaking free from her habitual thinking. Even if there was a risk of exposing her identity, she still had to save them.

She was no longer controlled by the military. She could make her own choices freely now. There was no need for her to follow absolute rationality as she had before.

But she was still a little too late. Someone had already been injured.

The sound of the explosion instantly threw everyone’s minds into chaos. What was happening now?

But they could not see Reze’s figure clearly at all. Their eyes were still searching for where the explosion had come from when Reze had already flashed to the top of the Brown Bear Devil’s head.

Using the explosion from the tip of her foot as a thruster, her speed was so fast that the naked eye could not track it. It was almost like teleporting as she flashed onto the Brown Bear Devil’s head.

Then her right leg turned into a bomb and chopped down onto the Brown Bear Devil’s head.

Bang!

The bomb formed by her right leg exploded, instantly blowing the Brown Bear Devil’s head to pieces.

The toughness of the Brown Bear Devil’s skin was clearly far greater than the Black Bear Devil’s, but its strength was ultimately not on the same level as Reze in her Hybrid form.

Rumble!

The Brown Bear Devil’s massive body crashed to the ground, making the earth tremble violently.

Its entire enormous head had been blown away by Reze, and its body was also a bloody mess.

The flames produced by the explosion obscured everyone’s vision, preventing them from seeing Reze’s figure.

By the time the firelight dispersed, Reze had also vanished. In reality, at a certain instant just now, Kotone Asaba had transferred her into the Kamui dimension.

Kotone had happened to transfer back right as Reze transformed. He did not stop her and watched as Reze instantly killed the Brown Bear Devil.

Suddenly arriving in that mysterious space again, Reze immediately realized Kotone had returned. It also happened to be a good place for her to change back into her normal form.

Only then did Kotone transfer Reze out again.

Everyone’s attention was on the Brown Bear Devil, and the firelight from the explosion had only just dispersed, so no one noticed Kotone or Reze appearing beside him.

Captain Volkov did not see who had killed the Brown Bear Devil. He only saw Kotone suddenly return, so he assumed Kotone had killed it.

"Was that you just now? Good thing you came back in time."

Volkov was still shaken. The Brown Bear Devil’s strength had been truly frightening.

"No, it wasn’t me."

Kotone glanced at Reze, seemingly asking with his eyes whether she wanted to say it, while Reze shook her head slightly.

It would be best if she could avoid exposing her identity. Although these people had not seen her transform into a Hybrid, the explosive nature of her power was too distinctive.

"I’m not sure what happened just now either. Maybe some passing Devil Hunter helped."

Seeing that Reze was unwilling to say it, Kotone casually fooled him.

"It wasn’t you... That’s a shame. They left too quickly. I didn’t even get a chance to properly thank them."

Volkov said regretfully.

"Berkolin! How do you feel?!"

Nick’s first reaction was to check on Berkolin’s condition. Since his legs were still weak, he crawled over to Berkolin on his knees.

Berkolin had almost lost his life to save him, and that filled Nick with guilt, especially since he had originally been at odds with Berkolin.

But Berkolin did not react at all. He seemed to have fainted.

Volkov was also about to immediately order someone to bring Berkolin back to Public Safety for treatment as quickly as possible. Team 1 had a Devil Hunter who specialized in medical devil powers, and they could ease Berkolin’s injuries on the way back.

Once they returned to Public Safety, they would have proper medical conditions, so Berkolin’s situation was not too dangerous.

But the main reason was that someone had acted in time just now. Otherwise, if the Brown Bear Devil had continued rampaging, not only would Berkolin’s life have been in danger, the other team members would have been in danger too.

However, just as Volkov was about to give the order, Kotone had already teleported beside Berkolin and placed his hand on Berkolin’s shoulder.

"I’ll take him back for treatment first. Don’t worry."

After saying that, Kotone transferred away with Berkolin.

Berkolin was unconscious. It was probably due to the combined impact of the bear paw and the price of using his devil power. Since he had fainted, he would not see Kotone’s Kamui dimension.

After Kotone left with Berkolin, Volkov immediately went over to comfort Nick, who was still kneeling and blaming himself.

"Don’t blame yourself too much. Berkolin will be fine. His injuries can be treated soon, and we’ll give him enough time to recover."

"..."

Nick lowered his head and stayed silent. This was not a question of whether the injuries were serious. The problem was that Berkolin clearly had a conflict with him, yet he had still been willing to risk his life to save him. That filled Nick with unbearable guilt.

He also recognized himself clearly. He really was the reckless newbie Berkolin had called him. When something unexpected happened, his entire mind went blank.

"Get up, Nick. If there are other devils nearby, things will get troublesome again. After we go back, properly apologize to Berkolin and thank him."

Funi also comforted him from the side.

Some of the others came over and patted Nick on the shoulder, then went to handle the Brown Bear Devil’s corpse.

It took them a great deal of effort to dig out a piece of the Gun Devil’s flesh from inside the Brown Bear Devil’s corpse as well. This piece of flesh was slightly larger than the one from the Black Bear Devil.

While digging out the Gun Devil flesh, they also discussed everything that had just happened.

"The Black Bear Devil, the Brown Bear Devil... I never thought we’d run into two devils with Gun Devil flesh at the same time. That intelligence mistake almost got us killed..."

"Good thing that mysterious expert stepped in to save us. That attack just now really stunned me. Bang, bang, bang, those explosions directly blew the Brown Bear Devil to death. Does Moscow Public Safety even have a Devil Hunter that strong?"

"Maybe it was a hidden expert among private Devil Hunters. Some private Devil Hunters are very strong too. They just don’t want to join Public Safety because it isn’t as free as working privately. Still, that mysterious person’s strength just now was ridiculously excessive."

"Speaking of that bang-like explosion, what devil power was that? Its destructive power was terrifying!"

"..."

Because the Bomb Devil had long since been eaten by Pochita in Hell, the concept of "bombs" had disappeared from human memory. That was why these people only knew that what had happened just now was an explosion, but they did not know what a bomb was.

The name "bomb" had been forgotten by people, and they no longer had any fear of "bombs." The existence of devils came from people’s fear of a certain thing, and this was the principle behind why devils eaten by Pochita ceased to exist.

But for some unknown reason, devils such as the Bomb Devil, the Sword Devil, and the Whip Devil had all been eaten by Pochita in Hell and had their names forgotten by humanity, yet their existence had not disappeared. Instead, they had been used by the Soviet military to create Hybrids.

Even Reze herself did not know that what she had fused with was the Bomb Devil. Instead, she called it "Boom," meaning the sound of an explosion.

Listening to these people discuss her, Reze showed no reaction. She seemed somewhat preoccupied.

After storing away the pieces of Gun Devil flesh dug out from the Black Bear Devil and the Brown Bear Devil, Captain Volkov had already contacted Public Safety headquarters. Before long, the personnel sent by Public Safety arrived and cleared away the corpses of the Black Bear Devil and the Brown Bear Devil.

After that, they returned to Public Safety along the same route.

Team 2, which had been rushing over to support them, had already learned midway that Team 1’s crisis had been resolved. Once the Corn Devil’s corpse was also cleared away, they returned as well.

On the way back, Reze looked out the car window. There was no emotional fluctuation on her face, so Captain Volkov, who was sitting in the same vehicle, did not notice anything wrong with her.

At that moment, Kotone suddenly appeared beside Reze. He had already handled Berkolin’s situation.

Seeing Reze like this, he could tell at a glance that she had something on her mind.

But because Captain Volkov and the driver were sitting in front, he could not say anything. Instead, he reached out and wrapped an arm around Reze, letting her lean against his shoulder.

Even though Kotone had not witnessed it with his own eyes, he could roughly guess what had happened.

With Reze’s strength, Berkolin had still been injured by the Brown Bear Devil. She had probably hesitated for a moment at the time, hesitating over whether she should transform into a Hybrid and save people.

Otherwise, with Reze’s strength, she could have easily killed the Brown Bear Devil in an instant. The Brown Bear Devil would never have had the chance to hurt anyone.

Because someone had been injured due to her hesitation, she was probably blaming herself. That was why she looked so different from usual.

Reze was unusually quiet at that moment. She said nothing and only slowly hugged Kotone’s arm.

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