Heartwarming / Chainsaw Man

A Boy And His Chainsaw Dog

"I want you to live a normal life and die a normal death. You'll live out the dreams I never could."

— Denji to Pochita

While almost as bleak and dark as Tatsuki Fujimoto's previous work, Chainsaw Man is not without hope.

---

Part 1: Public Safety

• Denji and Pochita’s relationship in general is full of heartwarming. Denji loves Pochita as his best friend despite him being a Devil and Pochita likewise returns his love and enjoys listening to Denji talk about his dreams of a normal life. When Pochita had the chance to take Denji’s body after he died and turn into a Fiend, he instead revives Denji and gives him control of their body with his only condition being “please live a happy life”. And even when Pochita is forced to take back control of their body by Makima, all Pochita wants to do is fulfill his friend’s dreams and hopefully find a way to save his best friend.
  • The idea to use Denji's body to turn into a Chainsaw Fiend was Denji's idea, by the way. He understood his living situation would not let him live for long and was more concerned with his best friend's wellbeing than himself. He wished for Pochita to live his life for him when the time comes but it's clear he's hoping for Pochita to be able to live happily without him.
  • The flashback to when Pochita was lost. While doubling as a Tear Jerker, it serves to show that Pochita could've abandoned Denji any time he wanted if he had only saw him as a tool to recover back to full power. Instead, it turns out he was just as upset about being separated as Denji was and is heavily implied to also have feared the worst enough to cry until the two reunited, much to their relief.
  • An extra chapter shows Denji and Pochita attempting to bake a cake with whatever they could scrounge up. They can only manage to make it in "soup" form and it's implied to actually taste like crap but the two are very clearly happy to share it together.
  • Pochita reveals why he loves Denji so much and would do anything for him. Because Denji hugged him. Pochita had a dream of being hugged but he was too strong and fearsome that every devil he hugged died. It was only when Pochita was weakened into his small dog form and he met Denji did he finally get what he wanted.
  • Episode 1 of the anime adds some extra scenes of Denji and Pochita playing together.
• Flashbacks showing Power bonding with Meowy. She never intended to get attached to the cat she was fattening up for food, but their bond ended up as strong as Denji and Pochita's.
  • While Denji initially scoffs at how far Power's willing to go to get her cat back, he then concedes that it makes sense to him if he thinks about it being a dog.
  • While it's a dark moment, it's kinda sweet that, even while broken and basically suicidal after the apparent death of Meowy, she takes the time to take back her dismissiveness of Denji's sadness about not being able to pet Pochita anymore, saying that in that moment she understands exactly how he feels.
• In Chapter 11, the father and the girl from Chapter 2 (or from the Bat Devil in episode 3) and a woman Denji yelled at to flee during his fight with the Bat Devil show up at Public Safety wishing to thank him for saving their lives. They later reappear in Chapter 89 to commemorate him again when the world learns of his victory against the Gun Devil.
  • A guy who was unfortunately stuck in a car Denji threw at the Bat Devil also shows up to complain, coming across as an Ungrateful Bastard. However, he also returns in Chapter 89, having completely turned around on his opinion on Denji and vocally expressing his gratitude for saving his life.
  • In the same chapter, Denji vouches for Power, in spite of her betraying him to the Bat Devil which even Aki lampshades. It might seem to be because of their deal to let him touch her boobs, but the end of the chapter makes it clear that Denji had completely forgotten about it, meaning he was sincere about giving her another chance.
• When she learns that she was so drunk the previous night that she nearly took Denji's virginity, Himeno apologizes profusely and says that she'd belong in jail if she'd gone through with it. Considering how every adult he's ever met has abused or taken advantage of him in some way, it's wonderful to see one of them actually apologize to him and admit that it wasn't his fault, and it was wrong to treat him like that. Denji forgives her, and the two of them have a very pleasant conversation over breakfast.
  • When they have ramen with Aki and Power later in the day, Himeno responds to inquiries about what they did last night by praising Denji as a gentleman. It seems that Himeno was intent on making good on her promise about being Denji's first friend.
• Kobeni rescuing Denji from Sawatari and Katana Man, despite clearly being seconds away from panicking the whole time. Given that her partner had just been shot, and her general aversion to danger, it's rather telling that she chose to risk fighting two very powerful opponents (Katana Man was heavily wounded, but she didn't know that until she arrived) to save him.
  • Before the celebration at the restaurant, Himeno mentioned that Kobeni and Arai felt pretty bad about trying to give Denji to the Eternity Devil on their first mission together. After saving him, Kobeni breaks down sobbing, apologizing profusely for her actions, implying she wanted to make up for it in some way, and risked her life to do so.
• The Ghost Devil (heavily implied to be Himeno's right arm) giving Aki a cigarette with the words "easy revenge". Aki promises Himeno that he'll meet her up there soon and quickly lops off the Ghost Devil's head with no fear.
• Aki and Denji gleefully kicking Katana Man in the groin as a way to avenge Himeno's death. Heartwarming on both ends, because we get to see both Denji learning to actually follow the rules and respect Aki's wishes (since they have orders to capture Katana Man alive), and because we simultaneously get to see Aki opening up a little and starting to bond with Denji. What makes this better is that Aki didn't want to do it as first, but he decided to do so after seeing Himeno's final gift for him. If Himeno can hear them up in Heaven, it's hard to imagine a tribute she'd enjoy more than the two boys she cared most about smashing in the nuts of the guy who killed her.
• A lot of Denji and Reze's relationship is cute and wholesome, which ends up being why the outcome of the Bomb Devil arc was considered so tragic.
  • While he does so with mild confusion, Denji makes good on Reze's offer to meet up at the cafe she works at. She seems genuinely surprised and delighted that he humored her.
  • Denji offhandedly admits that he'd attend school if it meant going with Reze. A Beat Panel of her surprised expression following by her grinning happily heavily implies that while she's playing it up to fulfill her mission, she was sincerely flattered by the comment.
  • Reze's happy smile after Denji agrees to a date at an upcoming festival. Especially when you consider she's doing it alone in a hallway with seemingly nobody around to fool or deceive.
• Aki saving Angel from the Typhoon Devil’s attack. While he is irritated with Angel’s lazy attitude and is displeased with their partnership, he’s seen too many people die in front of him to let it happen again.
  • Even more heartwarming is how he sacrificed two months of his own life span if it meant being able to reach Angel in time.
• For all his belief that he is slowly developing a Lack of Empathy, what is Denji's first thought after transforming to fight Santa Claus? Wondering if Power and the others are okay from being sent to Hell.
• While the relationship between Quanxi and her harem of fiends is played for fanservice at times, it's also shown to be a genuinely healthy polyamorous relationship. Quanxi truly loves each and every one of her girlfriends and the feeling is shown to be mutual. She's shown taking her fiends out on nice dates, and she only accepts the bounty on Denji on the condition that her fiends receive basic human rights and a proper education. She even doesn't hesitate to attempt a Heroic Sacrifice when they're all cornered by Makima, saying that she'll pledge herself to Makima's service forever as long as she spares her fiends' lives.
  • When Pingtsi requests permission to commit suicide when those inside the mall are taken to Hell, Quanxi tells her that she'll do whatever she can. This doesn't reassure Pingtsi in the slightest, but it does show Quanxi's determination to keep her lovers safe.
• After it becomes evident that Power is traumatized from the trip to Hell, Denji declines a trip with Makima, something that had been a key motivation for the past several chapters, so he can stay behind and look after his friend. Power shows that she's genuinely come to care for Denji in return and apologizes for making him stay behind.
• Aki and Denji humoring Power when she deludes herself into thinking she'd defeated the Darkness Devil in Hell. Usually, they'd call her out on her bullshit but they play along, fully understanding that she's making progress in overcoming her trauma.
• Aki's last acts alive. When Aki receives the vision of being killed by Denji, his first reaction isn't to kill Denji like he would have at the start of the series, but to find a way out of it. In a far cry from his past Devil/Fiend hating self, he leaves behind money for Denji and Power (with half of it going to Himeno's family) so they can get by without him in case the worst happens and tries to set Angel up with a cushier position so that he remains useful and alive for the Bureau.
• In a series where the ignorance, vices, and fears of mankind spawn and empower monsters, a bunch of terrified civilians not only recognizing that Denji (in his Chainsaw Man form no less) is trying to protect them, but willingly giving him some of their blood to battle the Gun Fiend is an almost shocking act of human valor, as they could have easily castigated him by association or run away from the fighting altogether.
• Chainsaw Man (Pochita) diving to protect Kobeni from Makima’s attack. Despite being a Devil with limited understanding of human nature and a tendency to kill without a second thought, Chainsaw Man proves he truly deserves the title “Hero of Hell” with that one act.
  • Chainsaw Man's "date" with Kobeni. Despite his fearsome exterior and limited understanding, he goes on a faux date with Kobeni in order to reawaken Denji by performing acts that he would like, such as playing arcade games or eating at a diner. Mind you Chainsaw Man is in his true form during this time (keep in mind that this is Pochita in his true form but with the same personality), despite looking out of place for these activities he does them regardless of how they make him look in order to get back his dear friend. Even moreso in that he does this instead of going along with Makima's master plan as she intended when awakening him.
• Pochita smiling happily when Power recognizes him because Denji told her about him.
• Power hugging Denji when she revives him in the dumpster. She makes him promise, in a Call-Back to the contract he made with Pochita, to find the Blood Devil and become friends with them since she won't have her memories when she dies.
• Denji breaks down after watching that the public adores Chainsaw Man. All he wanted in his life was some comfort, and by golly, he's getting it.
• For any pet lover, the fact that in the final chapter Denji has adopted Meowy and Makima's dogs is sure to pull some heartstrings. The image of Denji letting the kids in the park pet and rub the dogs' bellies while Meowy climbs over Kishibe will melt even the coldest of hearts.
• The fact that even after everything Makima had done to him, Denji still decides to adopt her reincarnation Nayuta and raise her to make sure she gets the love Makima never got. The fact that she reciprocates Denji's hug as they sleep shows that there's hope yet, especially since Nayuta's genuine attachment to him provides closure to the false kindness that Makima showed him.
• The first thing Denji does when he reunites with Pochita in a dream is to hug him tightly.
• By the end of Part 1, Denji is going to high school now while still fighting Devils, living with a surrogate sister. Regardless of how much he had been hurt to get here, he's finally achieved both of his dreams of having a normal life and being adored as Chainsaw Man, and is unquestionably in a much better place than when he started the series.
• The fact that a series infamous for its incredible quantity of gore, violence, sexual content, death, and misery ends it’s first Part with the message that kindness is important, no matter the amount given and no matter who it is given to.
  Pochita: Give her lots of hugs.

Part 2: Academy

Unknowingly falling In Love with the Mark.

• While it doesn't end well, Mr. Tanaka's lesson plan with Bucky and its initial success heavily suggests that society in Part 2 has become more open to comradery between humanity and Devils.
• Yuko, one of the two students Asa is paired up with to hunt a Devil, having fun with Asa and giving her her shoes since Asa’s shoes were ruined by bullies.
• War has an genuine Pet the Dog moment when it uncharacteristically offers words of comfort towards Asa after the above incident and tells her it’s as awful an experience for Devils as it is for humans and offers to kill the bullies for her.
• In an odd way, Denji gulfing down the cake Yoshida buys for him. Once upon a time he couldn't even afford cake and had to resort to mixing flour, water, and sugar to get a sense of what it was like, but now he can have real cake.
• Despite being transformed by the Justice Devil, Yuko is genuinely scared of hurting Asa in her rampage. When she sees Asa unconscious in Chapter 109, she stops in panic over her wellbeing.
• In Chapter 111, Yuko wants to give Asa one last goodbye before ditching human society. But before she leaves, Asa offers Yuko the shoes that she gave her since she's barefoot and the two share a laugh over how they first met.
  • We get a glimpse of Nayuta in Chapter 111, and we see that she and Denji are still falling asleep in each others' arms.
• On their date at the aquarium, Asa insists that Denji just stay quiet and listen to her explanations about all the marine life, saying he'll have a good time and that he doesn't have to think about anything. Denji rebuffs her and says he'll think for himself, and leaves to go look at the penguins like he wanted to. While the situation is very mundane, it shows that Denji's willing to live and think for himself in the present day, which is huge given everything he had to go through in Part 1, including actually losing his will to live and trying to become Makima's unthinking "dog".
• After accidentally breaking her phone and ruining the group's only chance of escaping from the aquarium, Asa decides to sulk by herself. When Denji comes to check on her, she derides herself and her weaknesses for getting him trapped in the Eternity Devil's loop and trying to kill him. Denji, being Denji, doesn't really get it, and responds by sitting with her in the tank she's moping in, offering her a starfish so she wouldn't go hungry.
  • This becomes even sweeter when you remember that one of the starfish facts Asa rattled off was about a prefecture where starfish are a common delicacy. Denji may have been bored out of his skull, but he was listening to her.
  • Sweeter still: the panel of him giving her the starfish is framed similarly to him giving Reze the flower, complete with his goofy little "Ta-da!" Except unlike that time, Denji didn't know Reze was actually an assassin sent to kill him. Asa, by contrast, fully admits to Denji that she was trying to turn him into a weapon, and while he likely doesn't understand what she means, Denji doesn't care because he can see how upset she is, even after their terrible date and shouting match earlier on. After all the trauma he went through in Part 1 with women seducing and then abusing him, it's incredibly beautiful to see how Denji has matured so much as a person that he can comfort someone who's clearly in pain.
• In chapter 116, as Denji and Asa sit down to eat starfish, Denji reveals the reason he's so fixated on making a quick buck is because he wants to use that money to send Nayuta to college, wanting the girl to live a normal life and not suffer like he did. While he might still be a lout who's obsessed with getting a girlfriend, Denji is committed to making sure Nayuta lives a happy life and not go down the same path Makima did as the previous Control Devil, and it's another showing of his incredible empathy for others despite of all his hardships.
  • It's also obvious by Denji's remarks about her that he sincerely thinks highly of Nayuta. We don't actually know if she really is a Child Prodigy or ultimately just smart enough to impress someone of Denji's level as of now, but one could almost interpret the way he mentions her as being similar to a Doting Parent being immensely proud of their child's potential. He also calls her his little sister, acknowledging her as his family.
  • Denji's focus on making money to put Nayuta through college also has a parallel with Denji's destitution prior to his contract with Pochita and joining Public Safety in Part 1. Compared to back then, when Denji had sold multiple organs and regularly risks his life to pay off a mountainous debt to fulfill his impossible dream of living a normal life, Denji, having finally earned some modicum of peace, now wants money for the sake of someone else, whom he clearly cherishes as family and wants to live happily.
  • Also in the chapter, Denji and Asa's relationship takes a far better turn. Denji says that Asa really is interesting after all when she gets over her hangups about meat to eat a fish, which gives Asa the affirmation she desperately desires and letting her behave more confidently for once, and Denji in turn appreciates her new attitude because it reminds him of Power. The two then run around the aquarium together stealing money for Asa's plan to escape, laughing and having fun all the while, and when Asa asks Denji for all the money, he almost immediately trusts her with it.
    Denji: You're fun.
    Asa: F—Fun...?
    Denji: What you say is totally boring... but you're interesting to watch.
    Asa: [stunned speechless then blushes] Yeah, that's right. I'm an interesting woman!
    Denji: [looking confused] Yeah.
    Asa: I'm fun, right?!
    Denji: [still looking confused] Yeah.
    Asa: I'm glad you noticed! You have a good eye! I'm charming, aren't I?! Aren't I?!
    Beat
    Denji: [smiles] I like that attitude. Reminds me of an old friend.
• Chapter 117 opens with Denji mentally kicking himself for immediately doing what Asa wanted when she asked for all the money they'd stolen. While it's quite funny seeing that Denji hasn't totally freed himself of his old habits, it's nonetheless another display of his desire to live on his own terms rather than mindlessly do what people order him to do.
  • Denji acting like a total sweetheart and a gentleman towards Asa must be seen to be believed. This is a boy that has been lead around on a leash for months by a woman who was only taking advantage of his emotional weaknesses. The ways said woman roped him into doing her business was through promises of sexual favors, none of which she had ever pulled through with before throwing him under the bus. Having survived that screwed-up previous "relationship," what does Denji do with Asa promising that she'll do anything he wants once they manage to get out of the aquarium? Ask her for a kiss? Solicit her for sex? No. He asks her out on another date while promising to make it much better than this one. It's no surprise that, at the end of it all, Asa ends up falling in love with him.
  • In the same chapter, Denji finally getting to see a penguin and carrying it around while Asa fights the Eternity Devil is both parts adorable and funny.
    Denji: It's a penguin! He's so cute. I wanna keep 'im!
  • Asa too is clearly now feeling genuine fondness for Denji and gives him a peaceful smile at the prospect of them seeing each other again. While she is far from perfect, she went out of her way to avoid using Denji anymore and clearly wanted to form something with him, with Yoru even remarking that what she is feeling is "love". And then Yoru takes control...
• Chapter 118: Turns out Yoru was actually right, Asa really has fallen for Denji, and fallen hard. While the way she handles it emotionally is perhaps...less than productive, Asa's crush on Denji is nothing short of absolutely adorable. The girl who thought "Drop dead!" whenever she saw a happy couple is now blushing shyly just from thinking about Denji, and she even falls asleep thinking about how cute his smile is.
  • Even her tsundere attitude is cute, in a funny way. Asa likes him so much that she's clearly heartbroken and angry when she thinks Yoru's inability to turn Denji into a weapon means he doesn't like her back. After spending all of Part 1 being led around by his libido by attractive women, for once Denji is now the hot one being fawned over by someone who fears he's out of her league.
  • It's also incredibly sweet in comparison to Part 1. As Denji himself angrily lamented during his fight with Reze, women were only interested in his chainsaw heart and nobody gave a shit about Denji. As he explained to Yoshida, he's even convinced that women will only become interested in him if they know he's Chainsaw Man. Asa is the first girl to truly fall in love with Denji for Denji, not because he's the host of Chainsaw Man, but because of his inherent kindness and decency as a person.
• After the Cliffhanger ending of Chapter 119 (in which Nayuta shoots a chain through Asa/Yoru's head after she tried to kiss Denji) made fans worried that Makima's personality had reasserted itself, the next chapter eases those fears by reaffirming that Nayuta is still just an innocent (if clingy) kid who does truly care about Denji, and only attacked Asa out of a desire to protect her older brother from being hurt again. She even later agrees with Denji that the smell of wet dog is a good smell in an adorable CallBack to the previous chapter, and gives him a peace sign at the end of the story when he agrees to her terms. Denji ended up raising her right after all. Her reaction to mind-wiping Asa (and Yoru) for the kiss and forbidding Denji from romancing her because she 'doesn't like her scent' can't even be called that unjustified, as she correctly points out that literally every woman Denji's gotten close to has tried to manipulate or kill him — including her past self — and she doesn't want her big brother to get hurt by that any more. Yoru was, indeed, in the process of trying determinedly to turn Denji into a weapon before Nayuta entered.
  • There's also the fact that Nayuta has generally picked up a lot of traits from Denji like his loutish laughter, his flashing peace signs, and general sense of humor based on that fart chart. Seeing the Control Devil so emotive and allowed to be happy, herself, and as gross as she wants goes to show that Denji is doing good preventing another Makima from emerging.
  • Nayuta wrestling with the dogs for food, especially when you realize she could just command them to let her eat it.
  • Look closely in the backgrounds and you'll see that Denji and Nayuta are still taking care of Meowy.
• The latter half of Chapter 121 can be summed up with "Aww, Yoru does care about Asa." As Asa mopes about her inability to get into meaningful relationships to the point of thinking she's better off dead, Yoru uncharacteristically tells her that she's being too hard on herself rather than tell her to get over it like you'd think she would. And when the bodies start falling from the apartment balconies, Yoru orders Asa to stay back for her safety.
• When the Falling Devil admits to targeting Asa, Denji immediately begins attacking harder. He might've promised to not pursue her to Nayuta, but he still cares a lot about her. Based on what he says, the threat of Asa being hurt had also apparently pushed Denji to outright try to kill Falling.
  Denji: Keep your hands off my ex-potential girlfriend!!
• Denji's whole speech to Asa in Chapter 127. As she's yelling at him to let her fall, he agrees with her that life sucks, and bad things just keep piling up with no break. Asa then responds by asking how he got over that, Denji responds by saying he hasn't, but he found that there are still things that are worth living for. Even if the punchline to it is just that those things are having sex, it still sends a fairly positive message that even a small, selfish desire like that is something that can keep you going.
• Yoshida tries to force Denji into making a Sadistic Choice where either Denji gives up being Chainsaw Man forever or choose to continue being Chainsaw Man at the price of Nayuta's life. While Denji tried his best to pick both options, Yoshida implies he knew Denji would have picked Nayuta's life over being Chainsaw Man. The fact Denji values Nayuta more than he values being Chainsaw Man says a lot about how close the two are.
  • When Denji and Nayuta reunite, they hug each other tightly.
• In Chapter 135, it's revealed that Asa has fallen for Denji twice, this time in his Chainsaw Man identity. Not only is her demeanor even cuter than her previous fluster over him (to the point of mentally coming up with a love poem for her hero), but when seeing news about the impostor Chainsaw Man, she is quick to dismiss him. Why? Because this Chainsaw Man is polite and well-spoken, while the Chainsaw Man she had fallen for is crude, gross, and a pervert. Once again, someone is finally loving Denji for being Denji, even in his Chainsaw Man form.
• Despite Chapter 136 showing Denji at what seems to be his lowest ever to the point where he outright tells a girl who wanted a date with him to leave him alone, Denji assuring her that he's usually more upbeat and charming than his current state does a lot to imply how much self-confidence and self-worth he's managed to gain and hold onto since the series began.
• Sword Man, aka Miri Sugo, returns after having appeared as Makima's mook in Part 1. He wants Denji to join him and the other Weapon Humans at the Chainsaw Man church. Rather shockingly, he's not doing this for any ulterior motive to control Denji like so many others. Instead, he's doing it out of genuine gratitude for Chainsaw Man freeing him from Makima's control, going as far as to issue a Declaration of Protection against Public Safety so Denji can also enjoy the freedom he's living under the church. It's probably the first time in Part 2 where someone doesn't want to keep Denji on any kind of leash, but to actually help him.
  Sugo: Let's get one thing straight. I didn't transfer here just to recruit you. I wanted to be your friend, Denji. Cuz you're the one who killed Makima and freed me...
• Most of Chapter 141 is Denji and Nayuta going about their "normal" lives. Upon recognizing that Denji is unhappy, Nayuta sleepily offers to stay with him for the rest of his life to cheer him up.
• While two of the Four Horsemen have selfish motives for fighting in order to keep humanity going, they do so for reasons that most wouldn't expect. Makima (Control) enjoyed watching movies and Famine loves the food that humanity has made (Pizza, hamburgers, etc). While their motives and methods are without a doubt cruel, they are ultimately doing so for the love of the human world and what it can create. Something as mundane as a pizza is what's motivating Famine to try to stop the apocalypse. Even the new Control Devil (Nayuta) is initially excited about the apocalypse but when Famine mentions the end of humanity's food she immediately changes her mind.
• Chapter 142 has Denji taking Nayuta out to a theme park, even though he's as broke as he is and is accompanied by Fumiko while doing so. And from the very same woman who groped him on their first meeting, took him out for some incredibly vulgar karaoke, and admitting to spying on him in the bathroom as a part of her job as his bodyguard, Fumiko turns out to be one of the scant few characters who actually sees Denji as the young boy that he is instead of Chainsaw Man. She explains that she and her family had gotten caught up in Denji's fight against the Gun Fiend, and while she harbors some resentment towards Denji for not hearing her cries to save her now-deceased family, she immediately realized that the hero that was slaughtering Devils left and right was just a kid all along, and seeing the broken expression on his face after being forced to kill Aki made Fumiko realize she wanted to protect him rather than hold a grudge. From one of the absolute least likely of places, Denji has managed to find someone who truly cares about him as a person.
• Chapter 150 sees the long-awaited return of Pochita, though still in Denji's mindscape rather than in the flesh. Having watched Denji struggle with the dilemma of what to do with their dream of a normal life fulfilled, Pochita cuts through Denji's angst with a simple question: "What should our next dream be?" In just a single conversation, Denji realizes that he doesn't have to settle for things the way they are just to keep his contract with Pochita intact because, as the latter subtly points out, a truly happy life is about following new dreams once the old ones are realized.
• In the otherwise very distressing and despair-filled Chapter 152, one bright spot is an old lady seen trying to pull Nayuta to safety away from a psychotic Denji.
• Nayuta proving in Chapter 153 once and for all that she is not Makima, and genuinely, selflessly, unconditionally loves Denji. Seeing the angry mob attacking and trying to immolate her big brother, Nayuta takes control of the old lady from above to attack and distract the mob so Denji can escape. This is very much in contrast to a similar moment in Part 1 where Makima orders Chainsaw Man to save her. Now, Nayuta is instead saving him.
  Nayuta: Run, Chainsaw Man!
• Chapter 155 shows us how Nayuta Took a Level in Kindness: as it turns out she had actually originally planned to repeat Makima's plans to give Denji happiness before cruelly taking it away as a means of finding an identity for herself. These plans ended up derailing tremendously when she eventually learned to genuinely enjoy her time with Denji and come to love him.
  Nayuta: Who...who am I?
  Denji: You're...you're my family, Nayuta.
• Chapter 163: Denji wakes up after being rescued by Asa and Fami. Before he even asks why she's there at all, Denij instead worries about what happened to her arm.