Silently, he appeared beside Aki, now leaning over the building's edge. His eyes were fixed on Denji and Power, who were diligently eradicating the last remnants of Santa Claus's puppets.

Kishibe's attention wasn't drawn to Leo himself, but rather to the trio of sheathed Dao adorning his belt. His gaze lingered on them momentarily before shifting back to Denji and Power.

Denji's chainsaw roared with relentless fury as it sliced through rows of puppets, while Power unleashed maniacal laughter with every swing of her oversized mallet. The cacophony of destruction and the restless movements of the fighters below created a stark contrast to the tranquility on the rooftop.

A sudden jolt ran through Aki as he clutched his right eye. The Future Devil granted him a vision, one filled with static, showing the War Devil's solitary figure against the backdrop of a colossal mushroom cloud. Despite the vast distance separating them, the mushroom cloud loomed large, casting a grim shadow over the vision.

Aki's fist clenched, his mind racing as he grappled with the sudden revelation of what lay ahead. The relentless battle with Santa Claus and the escalating casualties were beginning to take a toll on him.

Meanwhile, Leo's unwavering focus remained fixed on the battlefield. The moment to end Santa Claus's reign as the Puppet Devil was drawing near. Her main body would soon meet its demise at the hands of Denji and Power, leaving her to inhabit a broken puppet, concealed in a place where no one would think to look, ensuring that another Santa Claus would never emerge.

Kishibe heaved a sigh as he began to leave the rooftop. Santa Claus and Quanxi had been the primary threats to Public Safety, and now only Santa Claus remained. However, her time was rapidly running out. Before leaving, he cast one final glance at the Dao on Leo's back before departing.

Denji's voice roared out with a slightly metallic undertone, "Where are ya, coward?!" he barked, his chainsaw slicing through one of the last remaining puppets, leaving a trail of splintered limbs in his wake.

"HAHA! The Nobel Peace Prize is as good as mine!" Power joyfully exclaimed, her clothes drenched in the blood of the countless puppets she had eliminated.

Suddenly, Power's head perked up, and she sniffed the air for the scent of blood. Ignoring the pools of gore around her, she nonchalantly hung her mallet over her shoulder and carefully inhaled the smell of the air, much to Denji's perplexed expression.

Amidst the chaos, Santa Claus remained hidden in the abandoned office building, crouched against a wall, awaiting the inevitable as her connection to her last operable puppet was severed. She had only one puppet left, buried in the rubble of her underground city, barely in one piece and unable to move.

The ground beneath her began to tremble as nearby building walls collapsed, followed by yet another. Power smashed her way through these large obstacles as Denji's protruding chainsaws began to melt, leaving him bewildered as he followed in her wake. Power occasionally paused to sniff the air.

"We're..." she chuckled wickedly, her eyes gleaming with malevolence. "I'm, getting closer..." she muttered softly, her gaze shifting to Denji as she tightened her grip on the massive mallet.

The sounds of Power's destructive actions resonated through the desolate streets as yet another wall was brought down. Then, suddenly, a resounding bang followed, and a cloud of dust erupted into the air. Denji's battered and bloodied silhouette emerged from the dust, a look of shock frozen on his face as he began his slow descent to the ground.

As Denji plummeted, the backdrop to his fall was disrupted by the sound of Leo's loud chewing, tarnishing what could have been a dramatic and bloody descent.

"Betrayal..." Leo murmured, his voice muffled by a mouthful of burger as he casually observed Denji's fall.

Kusakabe's glasses gleamed as he adjusted them with a blank expression. Tamaoki watched Denji ragdoll through the air with a vacant look, while Yoshida couldn't help but snicker before clearing his throat and looking away.

Aki's eyebrow twitched in frustration as he took a deep exhale before simply turning around and making his way to the stairs.

Leo finished his burger, discarded the wrapper into a paper bag, and then leaped down from the building, making his way toward Power.

Speaking of Power, she wore a maniacal grin on her face as she confronted Santa Claus, or rather, her one-way ticket to a Nobel Peace Prize.

Santa Claus, pale from blood loss, didn't even bother to look up at Power as she busted through a window wielding her mallet. A vacant expression occupied her face as she wished she had just stayed in Germany, building her little underground utopia.

In a flash, Power brought down her mallet, immediately shattering the ground along with the wall Santa Claus was leaning on. An excess of red painted the floor and walls as Power didn't hesitate to bring down her oversized mallet on the capitulated Santa Claus.

"HAHAHA!" Power cackled as she let go of the handle of her mallet, bringing her arms out in joy as she celebrated her victory over Santa Claus's lifeless body. "Victory goes to Power!!"

Power continued to revel in her triumph, her laughter echoing through the destroyed office building as she stood amidst the carnage. Her maniacal joy seemed to know no bounds as she danced around the shattered remains of Santa Claus's puppet body.

Leo approached with a casual expression on his face, observing Power's jubilation. He didn't seem particularly surprised or impressed by her victory. Instead, he appeared more interested in the remnants of the battle.

"Did you see that, War Devil?!" Power exclaimed, her voice still tinged with excitement as she gestured toward the scattered puppet remains.

Leo whistled softly, raising his eyebrows slightly. "Not bad," he said, his tone still casual.

Power huffed her chest proudly. "It was all me!" she declared.

In the distance, Denji groaned as he lay flat on his back. His chest felt heavy, and he undoubtedly had broken ribs due to Power's sneak attack with her mallet. He was left with little alternative but to watch the clear ring in the sky as pain coursed through his body.

"I never thought I'd actually miss Beam..." Denji thought to himself. The Shark Fiend might have been obnoxious in his opinion, but at least Beam would backstab him last second to reap the benefits of a reward the two of them would be getting.

Out of the corner of his eye, Denji spotted Aki approaching from his left, with Angel gracefully landing to his right.

Angel wore an almost mocking smile, while Aki maintained a stoic expression. Without a word, Aki reached for the cord on Denji's chest, allowing him to heal from his injuries.

"Thanks..." Denji muttered, his voice still slightly strained, as he turned his body over.

Aki nodded in acknowledgment, his expression remaining serious as he continued to monitor the situation.

Meanwhile, Angel leaned casually against a nearby wall, her mocking smile fading into a more neutral expression. He observed the aftermath of the battle with a casual demeanor, as if the chaos and destruction were nothing out of the ordinary for him.

Considering the chaos that had unfolded earlier, the fact that the scene was now quiet felt somewhat surreal. The streets were empty, debris littered every corner, and mounds of mangled puppet bodies were scattered throughout. The only noise breaking the silence was Power loudly boasting about her victory.

Denji would have chosen the mature option and ignored Power. After all, he had played a part in killing Santa Claus. Being the bigger person was something mature men did, and he considered himself a mature man.

But the moment Power claimed she deserved two favors for killing Santa Claus, Denji couldn't ignore it and marched over.

"Huh?!" he exclaimed as he got closer, nearly tripping on a piece of debris as he stomped his way over. "Why the hell do you deserve two favors?!"

"I killed the Puppet Devil, duh," Power said matter-of-factly.

"Huh?!" Denji felt the veins on his forehead bulge as he gritted his teeth slightly. "We! We killed the Puppet Devil!"

"Nuh-uh," Power denied, childishly shaking her head. "It was all me."

Leo began walking away as Denji continued to argue with Power to little effect. She covered her ears with both hands. "What brats..." he mused, popping his neck as the fishbowl surrounding the area began to sink, revealing the cloudy sky overhead.

Elsewhere, Makima observed a TV screen with a blank expression. Her usual smile was nowhere to be found as her yellow eyes nearly pierced the screen.

"War Devil spotted in Germany," flashed at the bottom of the screen as it broadcasted an image of Leo staring at a large mushroom cloud in the distance.

Ironically enough, the situation made it difficult for Makima to control her anger as she calmly glared at the TV screen. It was starting to irritate her eyes as she refused to blink on the off chance what she was seeing was a fluke. There just wasn't a chance the War Devil managed to acquire nuclear weapons, there just wasn't.

Small droplets could be heard hitting the polished wooden floor as Makima clenched her fists. Slowly, she took a controlled inhale, releasing her own grip. She glanced at the palms of her hands; her own nails had dug into her skin and caused her to bleed.

Before she knew it, she began to shake, out of anger... or out of fear, it was unknown, even to her.

Things shouldn't be going like this, not by a long shot. Everything was out of place; nothing was as it should be.

The wounds on Makima's palms were gone, but the blood she had shed was still ever present as she brought her hands to her face. How long has it been since she felt overwhelmed, if at all?

Makima breathed in the metallic smell of her blood as she closed her eyes. It would only be a matter of time before the bureau called her phone, demanding an explanation, one that would undoubtedly infuriate her to no end.

She felt her blood cover her skin as she breathed in, followed by a long exhale.

"Yoru..." she murmured softly, her gentle voice obscured by her hands.

With a sense of resignation, Makima slowly lowered her hands from her face, revealing the blood-stained skin. She wiped her face with the sleeves of her coat, smearing her face with crimson along with a darker crimson on her dark coat.

The TV screen continued to display images of the War Devil, and the news of the mushroom cloud continued to fill the room with an eerie silence. Makima slowly approached the TV, her footsteps echoing in the distance. When she stood in front of the television, she slowly started to push it off its stand, making the large box shatter once it made contact with the ground.

Amidst the shards of the shattered TV screen, Makima stood in a room filled with the echoes of her shattered composure. Her anger and frustration had boiled over, and now, the aftermath lay before her like a broken mirror reflecting her own fragmented state of mind.

With trembling hands, Makima wiped away the last remnants of blood from her face. The metallic scent lingered in the air, a haunting reminder of her own vulnerability and the unraveling of her carefully constructed plans.

The room seemed to close in around her, the walls closing in like a vice. She needed air, space, a moment to think, to regain control. Without a word, she turned and walked away from the wreckage, leaving the shattered TV behind.

As she exited the room, she found herself in a dimly lit corridor. The world outside her thoughts felt distant and surreal as if she had been thrust into an alternate reality. The sound of her footsteps echoed in the corridor, causing her to suddenly turn around... only to spot nothing.

Makima continued to walk, her mind racing with questions and uncertainties. She needed to understand how the War Devil might've acquired nuclear weapons, and more importantly, how to regain control of the situation. Her plans had been thrown into disarray, and she couldn't afford to stay in the shadows for much longer.

Makima's steps were purposeful as she made her way through the dimly lit corridors of the organization's headquarters. She needed to gather information, to understand the extent of the chaos that had been unleashed, and to devise a new plan.

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