Fumiko's true role in Chainsaw Man may have been obvious all along

Modified Dec 01, 2024 05:51 GMT

Fumiko's true role in Chainsaw Man may have been obvious all along (Image via Shueisha)

One of the most enthralling aspects of mangaka Tatsuki Fujimoto’s Chainsaw Man series is its characters, all being well-developed and serving as narrative-driving forces. Likewise, nothing is more vexing for readers than a character with unclear or constantly changing motivations and goals. Arguably, the best example of this in Part 2 is Public Safety’s Fumiko Mifune.

Despite being first introduced as a self-proclaimed “Denji fan,” the Chainsaw Man manga quickly makes it clear that she isn’t truly on the protagonist’s side. However, the manga also hasn’t quite solidified her role or goals in the series yet, leaving fans unsure of what to expect from her.

Yet it seems quite likely that Fumiko’s role in the series has been to become Denji's new family— something that has been evident all along, especially in light of Denji’s recent emotional awakening.

Chainsaw Man’s Fumiko Mifune may become Denji’s new family, and it makes perfect sense

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One of the most fundamental pieces of evidence that suggests Fumiko Mifune is scheming to become Denji’s new family is establishing his impression of her. More specifically, Denji is unaware of the fact that Fumiko abandoned Nayuta and left her to die. This is because he was already in a delirious state and being carried away by a human Nayuta was controlling, as this scene fully played out.

Fumiko has also played a relatively comforting role in his life, even if it is in a unique way. They first went on a date, where she allowed him to forget his problems by taking him to karaoke and even giving him the chance to fight without transforming into the titular hero.

This was followed by her speech about being a Denji fan, putting her in opposition to Barem Bridge. Currently, Barem is the character Denji hates most, further teasing her role as his foil in this context.

Fumiko also does everything she can to protect Denji after the Chainsaw Man Church makes their move up until he transforms into the titular hero. Denji is also shown to be worried about Fumiko during the arc, telling her to run when Nayuta tried to attack her.

Fumiko has also kept her murderous and abandoning ways secret from Denji, which combined with the mentioned actions likely cements her as a good person in Denji’s mind.

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This in turn illustrates why Fumiko decided to let Nayuta die, wanting to replace her as Denji’s new family. Fumiko’s involvement with the Aging Devil and the revelation it led Denji to have regarding what family is and what it means, further supports this.

Likewise, Denji will view Fumiko as someone who can become his new family based on what he knows. While it’s possible she’s not the only one included, it seems likely that she will be one of them.

Arguably the nail in the coffin here is the cover art for volume 19 of the series, featuring Fumiko Mifune in a pose similar to Nayuta’s on the volume 18 cover. The colors are also similar but inverted in terms of their primary and secondary presences on each cover. This may be Fujimoto suggesting that Fumiko will soon fill the void left by Nayuta in Denji’s heart.

Final thoughts

Denji's next new family may be the most dangerous for him yet (Image via MAPPA Studios)

While speculative, the mentioned theory does explain Fumiko Mifune’s confusing actions throughout Part 2 thus far, as well as give her character some direction moving forward. Combined with the additional evidence that exists, it seems likely that Fumiko’s true role is to become Denji’s new family for the purpose of some unknown end.