Chapter 163 (Online): Tougher Than a Mountain

Even bolstered by his monster transformation, Garou cannot close the gap between himself and Saitama. As the fight drags on, Saitama keeps pointing out that Garou's flailing attacks somehow end up rescuing people, and he comes to compare the Hero Hunter to King while sensing the heroic instincts buried in him.

Garou broods over his failure to match Saitama despite all the power his mutation has granted. When Saitama presses him on what he actually wants, he needles the contradiction between Garou's talk and his deeds, noting that he did help the heroes against Sage Centipede. Garou insists he merely used Metal Bat as a tool, and Saitama's read that Absolute Evil sounds like a wish for world peace only stokes his anger.

Renewing his assault, Garou lands blows and slips past Saitama's counters, confirming when asked that he is using martial arts to read and evade. He credits Saitama's raw speed and reflexes for covering an untrained fighting style yet sees exploitable gaps everywhere. Certain he can predict the hero's every move, he unleashes a combination that drives Saitama through a row of buildings in a cloud of dust and assumes his rival's untrainable internal organs must now be ruined. Saitama walks out completely unhurt.

The collapse turns out to have freed five Hero Association members trapped in an underground shelter, who thank Garou before hurrying off, prompting Saitama to remark dryly on how good Absolute Evil is at saving lives. Enraged, Garou attacks anew and evolves further, sprouting wings and long horns into a demonic shape.

His next swing hurls Saitama into a volcano poised to bury a nearby city, and the impact shatters the peak and diverts the lava, sparing the town once again. Saitama emerges unscathed and hits back. Studying the broken mountain behind the unharmed hero, Garou cannot help admiring his durability, and Saitama, struck by all the accidental heroism, tells him he is a lot like King and has good instincts.

The chapter carries the Japanese title Yama Yori Mo and appears in Viz's run as Stronger Than a Mountain, adapting parts of webcomic chapters 88 and 89. Garou is the sole cover character, and the cover art is noted for resembling surreal human-formed skull pieces in the vein of Salvador Dalí.

Posted online on April 28, 2022 with 41 pages, it lies between Greatest Hero and The Abominable Fist That Turned Against God. The collected volumes number the same story as chapter 168.