Chapter 144

Shin tries to make Osaragi grasp how catastrophic Mafuyu's death would be, since it would set off the bomb Uzuki hid inside him. Osaragi stays unmoved and instantly resolves to cut Mafuyu apart with her circular saw. Struggling to make sense of her, Shin can find no trace of hostility in her manner, and her sheer innocence baffles him, leaving her real motives impossible to read.

Her raw power lets her take on Mafuyu and Shin at once with ease. To stand any chance against her, Mafuyu resorts to a special mask handed to him by Uzuki. The device sharply amplifies the wearer's heart and lung capacity, pushing their physical output far higher, though the boost carries a heavy price by cutting the user's lifespan short.

For a fleeting stretch Mafuyu seems to gain ground, even wounding Osaragi with a blade concealed in his heel. Despite that, his effort is not enough, and he goes down in a decisive loss.

Shin warns Osaragi that killing Mafuyu will detonate the bomb inside him, but she resolves to saw him apart anyway. Shin is unnerved by her lack of hostility and unreadable innocence. Osaragi takes on both Mafuyu and Shin with ease. Mafuyu uses Uzuki's mask, which boosts his body at the cost of his lifespan, and wounds Osaragi with a hidden heel blade. Mafuyu is ultimately defeated.

The chapter introduces the life shortening enhancement mask supplied by Uzuki. It appears in Volume 17 and centers on Osaragi, Shin, and Mafuyu. Hyo, Kanaguri, Nagumo, Gaku, and Natsuki Seba are mentioned or shown in flashback.