After the incident with the international assassins, Tokyo entered a deceptively calm period. On the surface, Public Safety seemed to have the situation under control. The surviving assassins, including Quanxi and her Fiends, had been "secured" by Makima. But behind the scenes, the atmosphere was filled with tension. Government and Public Safety higher-ups didn't know what to do about Tom Jacker. He was neither an ally nor an enemy. He was an unpredictable force of nature who happened to be on their side for now.
Makima, on the other hand, was incredibly calm. She didn't try to confront Tom directly. She knew it was futile. As the Control Devil, she understood the concept of control. And Tom... Tom was something beyond that concept. So, she resorted to the method she mastered best: psychological manipulation, with her most valuable and fragile pawn, Denji, as the primary target.
She began to give Denji what the boy had always wanted: an illusion of a normal life. She let Denji stay in her apartment, cooked for him, watched movies with him. She created a bubble of domestic bliss that made Denji feel safe and loved for the first time in his life.
Tom Jacker observed all this from afar with the interest of a connoisseur. He could see the threads of manipulation Makima was weaving around Denji. He could sense how Makima was deliberately building Denji's happiness as high as possible, only so she could shatter it even more spectacularly later.
"This woman... she's a true artist," Tom muttered to himself as he watched Makima and Denji walking in a park, looking like an ordinary couple. "She doesn't just defeat her enemies. She destroys their souls. Truly a beautiful performance."
Tom didn't interfere. He didn't warn Denji. That would ruin the masterpiece of tragedy Makima was crafting. He was an art connoisseur, and he wanted to see this painting to its completion before he decided to set it on fire.
The climax of Makima's plan finally arrived. Using her authority, she manipulated the situation to ultimately force the appearance of the Gun Devil. The monster that was the source of all Denji's trauma, the devil feared by the entire world, finally appeared physically, causing mass destruction on an unprecedented scale.
The Devil Hunters were deployed. An epic battle ensued. Tom merely watched from the sky, hovering invisibly. He admired the sheer destructive power of the Gun Devil. "Incredible firepower," he thought. "Might be worth 'collecting,' but my slots are full. I'll have to discard one of my old toys. A difficult decision."
As if in a script Makima had written, the battle ended with Public Safety's victory, but at a tremendous cost. And amidst the post-battle confusion, Makima executed her cruelest final step.
She brought an exhausted and bewildered Denji back to her apartment to "celebrate." There, Power was waiting for him with a birthday cake. As Denji was about to blow out the candles, Makima casually raised her hand.
BANG!
With one invisible energy blast, Power's body from the chest up was obliterated, her blood splattering across the room, hitting Denji's face and his birthday cake.
Denji froze, his mind blank. The world Makima had just built for him shattered in a fraction of a second. He had lost everything, again. And that's when Makima revealed everything: that she orchestrated it all, that she was the Control Devil, and that her goal was to completely break Denji's spirit to control Chainsaw Man.
She had won. Her game was perfect.
However, as a cold, empty smile of triumph adorned Makima's face, a soft clapping sound echoed from a dark corner of the room.
Clap. Clap. Clap.
Tom Jacker emerged from the shadows, applauding with an expression of genuine admiration. "Magnificent, Makima-san. Truly magnificent," he said. "A masterpiece of manipulation and cruelty. I've never seen such a beautiful performance. You truly are an artist."
Makima turned, her ring-patterned eyes fixed on Tom. She wasn't surprised. She knew this anomaly was watching. "So, you've seen everything, Tom-kun."
"Of course," Tom replied, walking closer, past the still-catatonic Denji. "I wouldn't miss the grand finale. But you know, every great show always has one problem."
"And what is that?" Makima asked, her voice still calm.
Tom stopped in front of Makima, his smile now turning into a predatory grin. "You forgot who the main audience is. And now, the audience wants to step onto the stage to give the director some 'notes'."
Makima looked at Tom, her serene smile not faltering in the slightest, though Tom's sarcastic applause still echoed in the blood-scented room. She looked at the broken Denji, then back at Tom. She was the Control Devil; surprise and chaos were elements she could control. This man was simply a larger anomaly.
"My stage is always open to new talent, Tom-kun," Makima said, her voice as soft as silk. "But usually, actors follow the director's lead."
She raised her finger, a small gesture usually enough to bring prime ministers or powerful devils to their knees. She focused her will on Tom, attempting to implant an absolute command into his mind. A simple command: "Kneel."
She expected Tom to flinch, to resist for a moment, then submit like all the others. She was used to feeling lesser consciousnesses "break" before her will.
But nothing happened to Tom.
Tom merely tilted his head, his smile widening. "Boring command. I prefer to stand."
Makima froze for a moment, her smile tightening slightly at the corners of her lips. She tried again, this time with full power. She felt her will crash against Tom's mind, but it was like a wave hitting an endless cliff. No grip, no crack, no sense of "inferiority" she could exploit. Tom's mind, protected by his divine-vampiric Template, bolstered by Solomon's Wisdom, and most importantly, underpinned by a cosmic ego that considered no one his equal, was an impenetrable fortress.
"Didn't work, huh?" Tom said with amusement. "Too bad. Looks like your main ability is useless here."
The realization hit Makima with greater force than any physical blow. She, the Control Devil, could not control this being. For the first time, she faced something truly beyond her reach.
She didn't panic. She simply changed tactics. If commands didn't work, then total destruction was the next option.
"What a shame," Makima retorted, her tone still calm. She pointed at Tom. "Bang."
An immense, invisible force slammed into Tom, exploding his entire upper body into a burst of flesh and blood, shattering the wall behind him. It was an attack that should have killed any devil instantly.
Makima stared at the steaming remains of Tom's body. But there was no sense of triumph.
Seconds later, amidst the puff of smoke, the remnants of the body began to move, pulling themselves back together, regenerating bone, muscle, and skin with impossible speed. In a blink of an eye, Tom was standing there again, whole, brushing off imaginary dust from his shoulder.
"Wow! Now that's an attack!" Tom exclaimed enthusiastically. "It felt like being tickled from the inside. Want to try again?"
Makima was now truly silent. Immortality. This creature was immortal.
The fight erupted in earnest. Makima unleashed all the power she commanded. She summoned the Angel Devil to create cursed weapons, fired barrages of "Bangs" that destroyed entire apartment floors, and even tried to manipulate rats and birds across the city to attack Tom en masse.
Tom danced in the storm. He used Bomb Transformation to create retaliatory explosions, Katana Transformation to cut through Angel Devil's weapons, and Spatial Teleportation to dodge the most powerful attacks. Every time his body was destroyed, he would reappear somewhere else, laughing.
"This is the best fight so far!" Tom shouted as he dodged a volley of light spears. "You're much more fun than that Baldy, at least you have variety in your attacks!"
Makima realized she couldn't win this way. Any damage Tom received would heal. Any damage Makima received would be transferred to random Japanese civilians thanks to her contract with the Prime Minister. This was a battle between two functionally immortal beings.
"Clever contract," Tom said, as if reading Makima's thoughts. "Making the entire population of a country your shield. But every contract has a loophole, doesn't it?"
Tom stopped playing around. He focused his power. He wouldn't try to kill Makima. He would do something worse. He would steal the essence of her victory.
He activated All For One. He didn't try to steal Makima's "Control" ability directly; he could sense it was too deeply tied to her essence as a devil. Instead, he targeted something else: the contract itself. He felt the invisible threads connecting Makima to every Japanese citizen.
"Let's cut your internet connection," Tom said.
He lunged forward, bursting through Makima's last barrage of attacks. He didn't try to punch or slash. He simply touched Makima. With the power of All For One now directed to manipulate and sever "contracts" and "abilities," he forcibly tore the supernatural bond between Makima and the people of Japan.
Makima shrieked, not from physical pain, but from something far worse. She felt the millions of connections that granted her immortality sever one by one. She was now alone. Vulnerable. Mortal.
[System Panel]
-Target and contract analysis complete. Supernatural contract forcibly severed.
-Condition 'target defeated' has been met. -System Notification: Ability 'Absolute Control (Concept Devil)' has been copied. Slot filled: (Replaces Hybrid ability, 'Katana Transformation').
-Description: Allows the user to control any individual or being that the user believes to be inferior to themselves.
Tom felt a new understanding of control and dominance flow into him. He looked at the now trembling Makima, her face for the first time showing an expression of genuine fear.
She had been defeated. Not just physically, but conceptually. Her strongest defense had been stripped away.
"Well," Tom said with a smile, his grin now devoid of any warmth. "Now that there's nothing else to interfere. Let's continue our 'discussion,' Miss Controller."
He had won the game. And now, it was time to claim his prize.