Akame Ga Kill - Garou

Garou looked calmly at the crazed Seryu. She didn't seem to be in her right mind; at least, the look on her face wasn't normal.

"I regret helping you. You harmed so many people just a few hours after arriving at the capital. A demon spawn like you must be destroyed!" Seryu seethed with rage.

Garou stared back, unmoved. He simply replied, "I just taught scum a permanent lesson."

"I will make you pay for what you did to them!" Seryu declared her intention.

"You want to fight me to avenge them? Do you know what they have been doing?" Garou asked calmly.

Seryu scoffed as she replied, "I do, but you are not in a position to deliver punishments, nor did their actions warrant such cruel treatment. You even harmed so many innocent bystanders! You evil criminal, I will avenge them!" Seryu replied, even though she didn't know what made Garou attack them. She assumed they acted like usual. They were a group of jerks who openly made fun of her justice and insulted her. She could tolerate them as long as they didn't cause real harm. And even assuming they did more than usual, what about the other civilians? In her mind, Garou was the grand evil that harmed people indiscriminately and must be destroyed.

Garou narrowed his eyes at her words, then gave her a disdainful smirk as he mocked her. "And I thought heroes were hypocrites. Soldiers here are on a whole other level. So, Seryu, what are you going to do? Shoot me? Send your useless dog to punch me with his deformed, disgusting arms? You should know your place, you hypocrite."

Seryu boiled with fury at his words and screamed for her trusty companion, "KURO!!"

The little dog beside her transformed into a giant monster, its small arms becoming enormous and muscular. Kuro started growling.

Garou continued smirking disdainfully. "Oh, you're actually going to send your dog! How nice of you! I put quite the effort into entertaining myself by beating these scum, and now you are sending your dog for me to eat. You are making my day wonderful, and don't worry—I will keep a piece of his meat for you."

Seryu pointed at Garou and screamed, "BEAT HIM TO DEATH!!!"

Kuro charged as fast as he could toward Garou, raising his muscular arm and punching out with all his might, while Garou stood still, smiling. Kuro's powerful punch came to an arbitrary stop with Garou holding Kuro's wrist in an iron grip.

Garou's sinister grin widened as he said, "I'll start with this arm."

The next instant, Garou flexed his body backward with such force that Kuro was flipped and slammed into the ground, cracking it, while its arm was amputated. Garou had torn off the arm at the shoulder with no effort. He then smirked as he threw the entire severed limb toward Seryu, saying, "Your share!"

Kuro immediately stood and turned toward Garou, opening his giant mouth, his sharp teeth threatening to bite Garou's head off.

Kuro's head rapidly approached Garou's. When he was about to bite, Garou's head disappeared, and an exceedingly powerful roundhouse kick pulverized Kuro's skull. Garou dodged the deadly bite and countered with inhuman speed.

Kuro was sent flying back next to Seryu, who had a shocked expression. Her Teigu had lost an arm, was slammed, and now had been thrown away with a kick. She looked at Garou with anger and slight fear. She knew how strong and durable Kuro was; if she had been in its place, she would have died. She didn't dare to get close to Garou. Her only option was to shoot him from a distance.

Seryu pulled out her two hand-sized machine guns and pointed them at Garou, who laughed at her action. "You think your little toys can take me down?" he mocked.

Seryu screamed as she started shooting Garou, who in return moved his arms like shadows in front of his body. Seryu didn't stop shooting until she heard the clicking sound of empty chambers. Her guns were out of ammo.

Seryu relaxed slightly, then tensed again when she realized Garou hadn't received so much as a small scratch. He was standing in the same place without moving a step. Garou smirked arrogantly while raising his hands in front of him, his fists clenched tightly. He then relaxed his fists and opened them. Seryu's bullets dropped to the ground, shocking her beyond belief.

Seryu couldn't help but take a step backward. Seeing Garou catch bullets like that was beyond anything she had ever witnessed. She had heard of and seen people counter bullets with their weapons or shields, but to catch them with bare hands was a whole different level. She understood Garou was leagues above her in strength and speed.

Seryu calmed herself, then looked at Kuro, who was struggling to stand up. She ordered, "Kuro, go berserk!!!"

Kuro stopped struggling and began to growl loudly. Garou looked toward Kuro calmly, with some curiosity. He simply watched as Kuro changed color to a mix of sinister red and brown. The dog increased in size, growing more muscular and defined. Kuro gave a loud roar, capable of stunning any average person. Garou observed the razor-sharp teeth growing in circular rows inside Kuro's mouth. The current Kuro reminded Garou of some of the demon-level monsters from his world.

Seryu laughed proudly. "You are done now!"

Garou gave Seryu a bored look, then started walking toward her, ignoring Kuro's transformation. Seeing his actions, Seryu screamed, "Kuro, KILL!!!"

Kuro lunged like an arrow with his mouth wide open, razor-sharp teeth in full display. He was heading toward Garou in a straight line.

Garou continued walking steadily and calmly, ignoring the approaching monster. Seryu's smile widened, believing she would finally take down Garou. Unfortunately for her, the moment Kuro was about to bite, Garou countered with a powerful uppercut. The force of the blow caused cracks to appear beneath his feet as Kuro was sent flying 20 meters into the air before dropping back down.

Seryu's smile froze. She looked at Garou with fear. She wanted to move backward, but Kuro dropped right next to her. She turned to Kuro, sweat covering her body. Kuro lay on the ground motionless, a considerable hole replacing part of his chest and lower jaw. Garou's single blow had caused such devastating damage even while Kuro was using his trump card.

"Looking away while facing me? You are either quite brave or a fool—the latter being the most probable reason."

Garou's voice sounded near her. She turned her face back to him, trying to jump back to create distance. However, Garou was faster. His hand, like a claw made of the hardest steel, clamped around her neck mercilessly, stopping her movement.

Seryu struggled to break free but couldn't budge Garou's hand in the slightest. She tried kicking him, but his body was too strong to even feel her attacks. She could only watch helplessly, her life in Garou's grasp.

"If you could fight as well as you can scream and talk, this fight might be interesting. Truly pathetic," Garou mocked her with an arrogant smile.

Seryu tried to speak. "I-I am…" Then suddenly, a gun appeared from inside her mouth and shot Garou right in the face.

Seryu was about to smile—until her eyes widened in shock. Garou had caught the bullet with his teeth. His cold eyes bored into hers, and despair consumed her mind.

"Garou, STOP!!!" Ogre finally arrived at the scene with his soldiers, but what he saw was far worse than he had imagined. Dozens of his policemen lay injured, some groaning in pain. Nearby, a group of men—many of whom Ogre recognized as local wealthy merchants—were sprawled on the ground, their wounds even more severe.

Despite the chaos, the injuries were not what shocked him the most. What truly horrified him was Garou, standing amidst the devastation, gripping Seryu's neck as if ready to snap it. Beside them, her Teigu lay motionless on the ground, a gaping hole in its body. Ogre's mind raced—how had Garou caused such destruction? From the looks of it, the Teigu had been using its trump card, which should have massively increased its durability and strength. And yet, it had been utterly destroyed.

Still, Ogre pushed his questions aside. There was no time for analysis. If he handled this situation poorly, things could spiral even further out of control—and he might not make it out alive.

Garou glanced at him, his expression as casual as if they were having a friendly chat. "Here to take revenge as well?" he asked.

A chill ran down Ogre's spine. The calm, almost dismissive tone in Garou's voice set off every alarm in his instincts. Right now, every fiber of his being screamed at him to run. But he couldn't. He had to act. He had to speak.

"If you kill Seryu," Ogre said, forcing himself to maintain his composure, "you'll have to deal with serious consequences."

Garou's gaze darkened, his grip on Seryu tightening slightly. "Are you threatening me?" His voice was low, laced with a malice that sent a shiver down Ogre's spine.

Ogre swallowed hard, feeling the weight of Garou's glare. He steadied himself and said, "N-no, I'm just stating facts! I'm not here for revenge. Seryu is young and impulsive—I just want to hear your side of the story first."

Garou looked at Ogre carefully and snorted, he knew what Ogre was trying to calm the situation and control the damage. Garou decided to play along; he wanted to see how Ogre would react.

"The story is quite simple. Two degenerates tried to rape a little girl who looked like 10 years old, while a huge crowd cheered for them. So I simply took the trash out. Then there was this orphanage manager who was selling the little children to some wealthy adults to toy and rape them. Finally, these dogs on the floor along with Seryu came to take revenge despite knowing the kind of garbage they were!"

Ogre was not really surprised, such things were typical in the capital, not to mention he did things even worse. But he still had to fake his surprise and act as if he didn't know. He didn't want to be at the receiving end of Garou's wrath.

On the other hand, Seryu who was still held by Garou, her eyes were red and her face pale because of the sheer force of Garou's grip. Despite all of that, she was still stunned by Garou's words. Was that the truth? If so, then didn't she fight to protect and take revenge for the real evil? Such thoughts disgusted her, she refused to believe Garou's words.

"Mister is not lying, they really did that. They wanted to use my sister as their toy." A boy came out of the orphanage alongside a little girl who was nodding her head while crying.

"Please, don't hurt Mister! He's a good person!" the girl sobbed, clutching at Garou's arm.

Ogre felt an urge to roll his eyes. Hurt him? How? Right now, he was the one walking on a razor's edge. One wrong word, one wrong move, and he might end up maimed beyond recovery—or worse, dead. And yet, these children had the nerve to plead for Garou's safety as if he were the one in danger. Ogre didn't even know where to vent his frustration.

Seryu, on the other hand, had completely stopped struggling. She stared blankly at the children, the weight of realization sinking in. This time, she had truly fought for evil. She might have refused to believe Garou's words, but the children were different. They had no reason to lie, especially for someone as terrifying as him.

Her voice came out weak, barely a whisper. "I… I didn't know. I'm sorry…"

Garou ignored her, his gaze shifting to Ogre.

Ogre immediately put on an act, his face twisting into a mask of righteous fury. "This is unacceptable! How could these monsters behave like this?!" he bellowed, his voice echoing with anger. "They will face the harshest punishment for their crimes! Men, take them all! Show no mercy or leniency—they deserve the worst punishment imaginable!"

His subordinates hesitated for a moment, stunned by his sudden outburst. They knew what kind of man he was, and this level of outrage was unlike him. But after a brief pause, they snapped into action, rounding up the criminals.

Ogre turned back to Garou and spoke with forced sincerity. "I hope you can let Seryu go this time. She's a good girl—she just wants to protect the people and punish evildoers. But… she can be impulsive in her actions."

Garou saw through Ogre's act but chose to let it slide. Without a word, he tossed Seryu toward Ogre, who barely managed to catch her. His voice was ice-cold.

"The next time you stand in my way, I'll make sure the capital operates without soldiers or police for a long while."

Seryu gasped and coughed as she regained her breath, relieved to finally be free. Ogre, too, exhaled deeply, knowing full well that Garou wasn't bluffing. The sheer power he had displayed left no room for doubt—he could make good on his threats without breaking a sweat.

Garou, however, had no real intention of becoming a wanted criminal just yet. He still needed to fully grasp his situation. Gathering information without being hunted by insects was far more convenient. Besides, the real scum deserved fates worse than death.

For now, everything was fine.

As for the future?

Garou wasn't afraid of whatever it held.