Hands and Adaptation

Sushishi's staff seats the group before a towering tower of conveyor-belt sushi. Watching the other diners, Denji wonders aloud whether they too have just received a handjob, then confides in Pochita that despite all the awful things lately, he just got one and is now eating heaps of sushi. He admits it felt less satisfying physically than masturbating but far better emotionally, leaving him unsure whether he is happy or miserable. An embarrassed Asa pretends she cannot eat anything and asks Fami to wait outside with her, but Fami's mouth is too full of sushi to reply clearly.

Haruka frets about eating without Seigi and the Nail Fiend, who are guarding the hideout, while Nobana refuses real sushi to avoid being stuck with the bill, earning Haruka's mockery. Nobana fires back that Asa is the odd one, carrying on as if losing an arm were nothing when he would cry for a week. A stranger joins the table, comparing Asa to an animal that simply adapts to a lost limb to survive, and questions whether Devils even feel sadness. Haruka blurts out his name, Barem, drawing Denji's attention. Denji lunges with chopsticks, but Barem reveals he can lead him to Nayuta if he listens. After a detour about the proper way to eat sushi, Barem warns that Public Safety has encircled the building and will harvest both of them the moment they leave, and that saving him is the price of learning Nayuta's location. Desperate for his adoptive sister, Denji asks what he must do, and for now Barem only wants him to share some tamago nigiri.

Denji reflects to Pochita on his confused mix of emotional satisfaction and physical letdown, while the group bickers over the bill and Asa's eerily calm reaction to losing her arm.

Barem Bridge reveals himself at the table, offers to take Denji to Nayuta, and warns that Public Safety has surrounded Sushishi and intends to harvest them both, making his own rescue the condition for the information.

Issued June 26, 2024 and collected in Volume 19, this chapter continues the Aging Devil arc from Chapter 168 toward Chapter 170. The Japanese title romanizes as Te to Tekiō. Pochita, Nayuta, and the absent guards Seigi and the Nail Fiend are referenced, and the wiki notes Fami's garbled reply to Asa is meant to convey that Public Safety waits outside.