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Creator Tatsuki Fujimoto blew fans away with the events of Chainsaw Man chapter 178. The recently released chapter showcased the next phase of the battle between the Hero of Hell and a reinvigorated War Devil, Yoru. Having her arms sliced off, she resorted to what she had never imagined using, i.e., gauntlets made from the Tank Devil and Gun Devil.
As evident from the chapter, Pochita looked to be no match for this new upgrade. Yoru's Gun Gauntlet blasted him away, and he lay at a distance, unable to continue. This is where the Aging Devil stepped in and presented him with a sinister offer — consuming them to regenerate in exchange for children dying all over Japan.
Looking at the chapter from a broader view, Pochita suffering damage like this showed why he needed his allies in the fight against the Four Horsemen and Weapon Devils. An interesting theory stemmed from this chapter's release, which explains the Chainsaw Man's ability to return, but at a cost.
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Disclaimer: This article is speculative in nature.
Chainsaw Man chapter 178 shows why Pochita needed his allies against the Four Horsemen
Chainsaw Man chapter 178 witnessed Pochita get utterly defeated by Yoru. Just as it seemed like the Hero of Hell would put an end to Asa Mitaka/Yoru, the War Devil pulled out her wildcard to render him incapable of continuing the battle. This is where an intriguing theory that looks to be making its rounds in the fandom is formulated.
To begin with, Pochita has been incapacitated and might only be able to continue if he accepts the Aging Devil's offer and consumes them to regenerate. But this also happened in Part I when Pochita fought Makima. He lost the fight but managed to edge the Control Devil because Power saved him. So, in that instance and this one, Pochita needed help to keep up. This leads to the question of how he managed to take on the Four Horsemen and the Weapon Devils.
The answer is simple — he had help from his followers. Pochita's specialty lay in his inability to stay dead. So, by this logic, when he fought his opposers in Hell, he had help from those who adored him, like the Spider Devil, Blood Devil, Angel Devil, Violence Devil, and Shark Devil.
It is unclear whether he requested them for help or they did so of their own accord, but they likely helped nonetheless. Again, similar to the Makima and Yoru fights, one of them gave him their blood when he suffered damage.
Referring back to the fight in Hell, this is also probably how the mentioned allies of Pochita ended up on Earth, i.e., sacrificing themselves for him and dying in battle. One by one, as they all bowed out, Pochita had no help left and was compelled to flee to Earth and take on an inferior form to survive.
Further, Makima collected all his allies just to display her superiority over him. This would explain why she specifically recruited the Angel Devil and why killing Power was a bonus.
Moving on, as the Angel Devil explained to Aki Hayakawa, none of the reincarnated Devils recalled anything of their time in Hell. The only thing that rang in their heads was the sound of a roaring chainsaw. This is where things take a bit of a different turn — the series lore explains that Chainsaw Man killed the Devil in Hell (as seen on Earth, too, when he ate Octopus Devil and Mouth Devil).
The theory concludes by speculating that the sound of the roaring chainsaw meant something else entirely. Instead of Pochita killing Devils, it was them giving him and his engine roaring back to life to continue fighting him.
Makima's words hint at this fact when she mentions many Devils sacrificed themselves for Pochita, even ones they (Four Horsemen) had never seen before. Thus, Chainsaw Man's unmatched ability to return sometimes needed sacrifice by those who loved him.
Related links:
- Who is Pochita in Chainsaw Man? Explained
- Chainsaw Man: Why Pochita is the key to everything, explained
- Why are Devils afraid of Pochita in Chainsaw Man? Explained
