Three days later. Inside a Tokyo hospital.
Denji sat on a chair beside the hospital bed, his head drooping, completely devoid of energy.
Lying on the bed, Makima's eyes were tightly shut. Her breathing alternated between calm and rapid, as if she were engaged in some kind of exercise.
She had been sleeping for a full three days.
During this time, aside from attending Meng Fan's funeral, Denji had stayed by her side constantly.
At that moment, the door to the ward was pushed open. Himeno and Aki Hayakawa walked in carrying bento boxes.
Seeing the spaced-out Denji left a bitter taste in their mouths.
First, Denji's favorite person, Makima, had become a vegetable.
Then, his master was reduced to nothing but a head and a pair of legs.
Now, three days had passed, and Meng Fan still hadn't resurrected.
Therefore, Division 4 had held a small, simple funeral for Meng Fan. They buried his head and legs in the flower beds at the Tokyo Public Safety Headquarters, hoping that upon his resurrection, he could immediately return to the department.
"Denji, go back and get some rest. We'll watch over Miss Makima." Himeno stepped forward and patted Denji on the shoulder.
Denji didn't speak; he just turned his head and gave them a glance.
"Eat. You haven't eaten in three days. If you keep this up, you'll end up lying in a hospital bed just like Miss Makima." After scolding him, Aki Hayakawa casually placed a bento box on Denji's lap.
"Thanks for your hard work. I'll head back for now. If there's any news about Makima or my master, make sure to notify me immediately." Denji picked up the bento box and stood up.
After accidents befell his two favorite people, even though Denji hadn't cried, he just couldn't feel happy.
On the street, he walked like a man who had lost his soul.
"Denji!"
Suddenly, a familiar voice called out.
Denji turned to look toward the source of the sound.
Power was sitting inside a ramen shop, waving enthusiastically at him.
Regarding what had happened to Meng Fan and Makima, it could be said that Power couldn't care less. She remained as lively as ever every day, constantly thinking about her Nobel Prize.
"Denji, come in and eat!" Noriyuki Natsume had also noticed Denji.
He took the initiative to walk out and pull the dead-eyed Denji into the noodle shop, shouting to the owner, "Boss, one more bowl of udon!"
"Coming right up!"
After taking a seat, Denji set his bento box aside. He noticed that Power and Noriyuki's bowls were already empty.
"Denji, cheer up!" Power laughed, slapping Denji hard on the back. "When the Great Me wins the Nobel Prize and becomes Prime Minister, I'll let you take Makima's position!"
"Denji, how has Miss Makima been lately?" Noriyuki asked as he poured a cup of hot water for Denji.
"She still hasn't woken up. But why are you two here?"
"It's because Himeno and Aki Hayakawa have been busy, so they entrusted Power to me to watch over during the day."
"Here's your udon." The owner enthusiastically placed the bowl on the table.
"Thank you." Noriyuki pushed the udon in front of Denji. "Eat up. Your master won't die. He's just entered a certain state."
"A certain state?"
Denji's half-closed eyes shot wide open.
"Before, when you guys were dealing with the Eternity Devil, didn't Meng Fan also 'die'?"
Denji's mind instantly flashed back to the battle against the Eternity Devil.
Back then, Meng Fan lay motionless on a bed, indistinguishable from a corpse.
Everyone thought he was dead.
But he ended up coming back carrying food.
"Are you saying my master's soul just left his body like last time, and he's not actually dead?"
"Exactly. I know your master's character best. It's impossible for him to die."
"But his body is gone! Unlike last time, his corpse isn't even whole."
"Don't worry about it. When Meng Fan resurrects, he'll be using a brand new body. Burying his previous corpse was the right thing to do."
"Then where did he go? It's been three days and he hasn't returned!" Denji asked anxiously.
"He's probably staying in the Dream Dimension for some specific reason. Just wait, he'll come out sooner or later."
With Noriyuki's explanation, Denji's mood instantly improved significantly.
Though he didn't know if it was true or false, at least he had some hope.
"Eat quickly. If the noodles get soggy, they won't taste good."
Denji nodded and fiercely began slurping the udon.
"I'm amazed you can stomach the ramen here. The taste is absolute garbage."
At that moment, a complaint came from a man at the neighboring table.
There were no other customers around. Clearly, these words were directed at them.
Noriyuki turned his head to glance at the man but didn't respond.
Denji had absolutely no interest in what the man said, solely focused on devouring his noodles.
Only Power retorted, "Don't try striking up a conversation with the Great Me! I know you've got your eyes on me."
The man didn't reply to her accusation, instead continuing on his own, "Looking at your expressions, you guys must have run into some unpleasant situations."
"The only unpleasant situation the Great Me has run into is meeting you while eating!"
Power's words successfully grabbed the man's attention.
He hadn't expected this woman to talk so much.
But his expression remained calm as he continued, "Just like you, I've also run into a very unpleasant situation."
"Serves you right."
"Bastard, can you stop interrupting for a second?!!"
The man, who was supposed to be calmly stating his case, suddenly flew into a rage.
Instead of continuing his story, he pulled a photo from the inner pocket of his jacket.
"Denji, take a look. Do you know this person?"
Denji, having his name called, turned to look at the photo in the man's hand.
In the photo was the Yakuza boss who had been despised by his wife.
And the little boy in the photo bore a striking resemblance to the talking man.
"Do you know him?" Noriyuki asked.
"I don't know him. What do you want?" Denji glared at the man, his tone highly irritated.
"The Gun Devil wants your heart."
As soon as the man finished speaking, he pulled out a handgun and fired a shot straight at Denji's head.
Denji took a bullet to the head and collapsed instantly.
His body flipped the table over.
The half-eaten bowl of udon spilled onto the floor.
At the same time, the surrounding customers were terrified by the gunshot.
One by one, they abandoned paying their bills and sprinted outside.
After firing one shot, the man quickly aimed and fired at Noriyuki Natsume.
Noriyuki reacted fast and swiftly dodged, avoiding the bullet.
From the side, Power seized the opportunity and dashed in front of the man, punching him squarely in the jaw.
The man stumbled backward and fell hard onto his rear.
The handgun instantly flew out of his grasp.
Seeing this, Noriyuki swiftly caught the gun before it hit the floor, did a forward roll, and stood up.
Bang!!
Several gunshots rang out as Noriyuki shot the man multiple times in the legs.
"Who are you? Why are you shooting at us?"
"Why? I already told you, the Gun Devil wants Denji's heart."
The corners of the man's mouth curled up slightly. His right hand grabbed his left hand and quickly pulled it off.
Sharp katanas suddenly shot out from both his hands.
His head was horizontally pierced by a unique katana blade.
"This is... the Katana Devil." Startled, Noriyuki took a few steps back.
Power hastily said, "The Katana Devil sounds pretty tough! If there's nothing else, the Great Me will be taking her leave now!"
Dropping that single sentence, she vanished along with the rest of the ramen shop's customers.
Her reaction left Noriyuki a bit bewildered.
Thus, he hurriedly ran to Denji and pulled the starter cord on his chest.
Vroom vroom!!
The sound of a chainsaw roared to life.
Denji, who had been shot in the head, was revived at full health.
"I leave him to you, Denji-kun." With that, Noriyuki also bolted.
He was just an ordinary human; there was no way he could interfere in a battle between two weapon devils.
Meanwhile, not far away, Arai and Kobeni had just finished handling a case.
An old woman suddenly called out to them.
"Excuse me, how do I get to Tamagawa Road?"
Seeing that it was a kindly-looking old woman, the two stopped and pointed her in the right direction.
"Thank you," the old woman smiled.
"You're welcome. We'll be on our way now."
The two waved at the old woman and continued walking forward.
"Arai-senpai, where are we going now?"
"Let's go take a look up ahead. I thought I just heard a gunshot."
"Okay."
Just as Kobeni and Arai were about to head forward to investigate, the originally amiable old woman suddenly revealed a vicious expression.
She pulled out a handgun, aimed it at the back of Arai's head, and decisively pulled the trigger.
Bang!!
The gunshot rang out, but a figure suddenly blocked Arai from behind.
The bullet was caught by that person's bare hand.
"Granny, shooting someone in the back is a pretty cheap shot."
When the old woman saw the person who had suddenly appeared, her face twisted in absolute panic.
"Y-you... aren't you dead?!!!"
Enjoying the fic ???? wanna read more chapters and also support the fic checkout my pateron "https://www.patreon.com/cw/AfrikaanPolarBear" you can read 20 advance chapter for $7 or 40 advance for $11 , So checkout my patreon if you want to support the fic.