Asa's current status in Chainsaw Man may be much worse than fans think

Modified Feb 14, 2025 16:30 GMT

Asa's present situation might be worse than what meets the eye (Image via MAPPA)

Chainsaw Man's latest chapter has sparked immense speculation in multiple forms. Although this chapter was relatively calmer than previous installments, it fueled a ton of new theories regarding Denji's true feelings, the cycle of despair, the Death Devil's arrival, a possible Blood Devil reappearance, and many more. Among them, an intriguing theory, and the focus of this feature, revolves around Asa's identity.

Ever since the Asa-Yoru dynamic was clarified at the beginning of Chainsaw Man Part I, many have theorized that Asa's true identity is the War Devil itself. But no proper explanation was given, and adding fuel to the fire, Asa's origins remain largely unexplored. Nonetheless, the interaction between Denji and Yoru has reignited this speculation around who Asa is, and if true, it could be quite bad.

Disclaimer: This article is speculative in nature.

Chainsaw Man: Asa's present situation might be worse than what meets the eye

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This recently surfacing theory is an improvement and a nod in the direction of the famous "Fight Club" theory in the Chainsaw Man fandom. In essence, this one surrounds Asa Mitaka and who or what she might actually be. In the initial bits of Part II, Yoru came to Asa's rescue following an unfortunate incident. At the time, Yoru promised to return Asa's body if they beat Chainsaw Man.

Now, in chapter 193, Yoru very clearly tells Denji that he's been "beaten to a pulp." This likely implies that in her eyes, Denji and Chainsaw Man are the same. When looking closely, it is evident that Yoru only ever cooperated with Denji but fought Pochita. Another way of viewing this would be taking Yoru's words from a general perspective—Nayuta's demise, Denji losing control, being targeted, etc.

According to this then, Chainsaw Man has been defeated, as Yoru herself acknowledges. Moreover, she goes further by setting a bigger goal, i.e., defeating the Death Devil. So by any interpretation, the contract with Asa has technically been fulfilled, implying that Yoru must return Asa's body to her. But this doesn't seem to or hasn't happened yet, which leads to two possible explanations.

The first one is that upon Asa and Yoru's first meeting, the word "contract" wasn't explicitly mentioned. Instead, the only probable contract forged was when Asa was at death's door and Yoru took over her body in exchange for giving her life once more. In this case, Yoru is free to do as she pleases. But if Chainsaw Man's defeat was somehow part of this contract, then matters take a different turn.

This would then imply that Asa is the actual War Devil. In other words, this side of Asa was awakened when she was at her lowest, mentally. So, she conjured up this persona of the War Devil as everything that she desired to be. Again, Asa being War would also hint as to why she didn't resist when Yoru revealed "their" feelings to Denji. Put simply, Asa is allowing her confident side (Yoru) to act.

Again, another plausible point here is that Asa is yet in control and purposely permitting Yoru to do as she has done. This would explain why Asa/Yoru punched themselves when Yoru was unsuccessfully trying to console Denji in Aging's World. By that interaction, it is proved that Asa now has more power to take control when needed. This could be why Asa stays back when Yoru reveals her feelings.

Thus, the current scenario stands due to one of two reasons: Asa herself is Yoru or Asa is using Yoru (her more confident side) to get her feelings across.

In Conclusion

A closer look at Asa’s current status in Chainsaw Man reveals that her situation may be more complex than previously thought. It is now being speculated whether Asa is truly distinct from Yoru or if she is indeed the War Devil. The above-explored theory does seem convincing that Asa might have subconsciously fabricated Yoru as an expression of her inner desires, particularly against psychological distress.

A key argument here pushes the fact that Yoru hasn't returned Asa’s body despite defeating the Hero of Hell. Hence, this ties into the two possibilities that either Yoru isn't really bound by contract or Asa and Yoru are one and the same. It is quite intriguing that Fujimoto would (likely) reference the popular movie Fight Club in chapter 193 and possibly here too, i.e., an alter ego formed under mental strain.

All in all, if Asa really is the War Devil, the story could face a significant change of direction. But until anything concrete comes to light, Asa and Yoru will remain shrouded in mystery and the subject of speculation.