| Overview |
Warning: This page contains major spoilers for the Chainsaw Man series. Please read at your own risk.
"The precious hands of innocent children! Are meant for studying! Don’t put guns into them!!"
The Nail Fiend (
They make their debut in the Chainsaw Man Church arc, and reappear as a supporting character in the Current arc.
Appearance[]
The Nail Fiend is dressed in the typical office worker and jacket attire of other Public Safety members. Their most notable feature is their face, which is completely split in half. The right half of their face is mostly cracked open and showing only nail-riddled brain matter even though other organs should be present.
In particular, there is a prominent crack on their right cheek, possibly as a result of the injury that caused their initial death, or one they sustained prior to it. The left half of their face is covered by a long fringe that reaches down to their nose. The hair on the back of their head is medium-length and flares outward.
Their form is rather androgynous; their pants are worn high up their waist similar to female members of Public Safety such as Himeno and Makima, but their torso - especially their chest and shoulders - is far more masculine in shape. They are also drawn with a predominant Adam's Apple, which is typically associated with men.
They are also always shown seen carrying a hammer which they use in combat.
Personality[]
Similar to their partner, the Nail Fiend believes to hold some form of moral principals. Whilst Katana Man respected his grandfather's work as a mobster who only killed "when necessary" and claimed to feel guilt over killing those transformed by the Zombie Devil, his partner criticises the Church for training children to act as soldiers due to valuing their innocence, as well as calling Yoru rude for kicking Fami out of the way of their attack. However, just like Katana Man, they have a major violent streak; most evident when they aggressively struck one of the children they were "protecting" just because they didn't speak politely, likely traumatizing the very children they claimed they were protecting the innocence of. Despite this, their protectiveness of children does seem to be legitimate, as their distaste for the culling of Fire Devil-contracted children is what lead to them betraying Public Safety.
Flamboyant and jovial, they also strike poses during combat and involve elaborate flips and slides in their movement, and during casual conversation they rest a hand on their hip. They often refer to other people with terms of endearments - such as calling the Church's children "moppets" or "dears" and Fami "the poor thing" when she was struck by Yoru - and they refer to themselves with unisex language and pronouns in the Japanese version. In addition, they tend to treat dangerous situations with a casual attitude, such as calling the Chainsaw Man Church elder "arrogant" when he morphs into his Devil form, and due to being placed among the ranks of other powerful Devils like Katana Man and Quanxi, they likely have the skill and proficiency to justify this behavior.
Nail Fiend seems to find men sexually attractive, as evident by how they laid by Denji's side when he slept. However, they don’t seem to find Denji's rudeness and grossness attractive in the slightest and they quickly lose interest in him.
Plot[]
History[]
At some point, they were originally a normal human, but died under unknown circumstances. Their body was subsequently found and possessed by the Nail Devil. They were then employed by Public Safety, likely sometime after Makima's death.
Academy Saga[]
Chainsaw Man Church arc[]
The Nail Fiend participates in apprehending the Chainsaw Man Church's members.
After Quanxi apprehends The Weapons, Public Safety sends Katana Man and Nail Fiend to raid the Chainsaw Man Church's main headquarters. Upon reaching the building, they proceed to apprehend and restrain the younger members of the Church, condemning the Church for training minors to fire weapons instead of giving them a proper education.
The Nail Fiend asks one of the apprehended students to promise that he focuses on studying instead of fighting, but when he gives a rather non-committed answer, they strike him violently enough that he bleeds out from the mouth and his eyes bulge. An elder cult leader then begins to morph due to his Fire Devil contract, but he is struck down by Katana Man before the Fiend can be attacked.[1]
Shortly afterwards, the two Devil Hunters witness the students transform into faux Chainsaw Devils due to their contracts with the Fire Devil activating. The combined duo of Katana and Nail then embrace themselves for the incoming horde, with Katana Man screaming out of frustration over seeing multiple Chainsaw Men.[2]
Current arc[]
A week after the ongoing Fire Devil attacks, Katana Man and his Nail Fiend partner are sent to guard Tokyo Devil Detention Center. From there, the duo attempt to ambush Asa and Fami's group after Takagi attempts to distract them.
The Nail Fiend attempts to strike Fami down from behind.
After Yoru kicks Fami out of harm's way, the latter attempts to call the Guillotine Devil, who has reverted back into its effigy form. As Fami is distracted by this, the Nail Fiend prepares to strike her from behind using one of their hammers. They miss due to Yoru kicking her elder sister away once again. Taunting Yoru for not going easy on Fami, the Nail Fiend and Katana Man prepare to fight the group.[3] However, Katana Man recognizes Asa as the Chainsaw Man Church's poster girl, causing the Nail Fiend to ask his partner if he is one of her fans.
Katana Man denies this and proceeds to complain about Chainsaw Man and his followers. While this happens, the Nail Fiend continues mocking his partner for being completely delusional about the Yakuza being Japan's heroes. Takagi intervenes and reminds the two of their duty. Before the duo can attack, Asa manages to convince them to form a truce as her group is planning to fight Chainsaw Man. The two Devil Hunters contemplate upon hearing Asa's words.
Takagi questions the two with the threat of not allowing them to achieve their personal goals. Unfettered and unamused by the threat, Nail reveals that they are getting tired of killing children, believing it to be "cartoonishly evil". They also compliment Katana Man's speech for why his heart keeps beating as the latter attempts to attack the eye-patched grunt. With the grunt out of their way, both Katana Man and the Nail Fiend join Asa and Fami's group to locate Chainsaw Man.[4]
The group eventually reaches the third floor of the basement. They discover that Chainsaw Man has already been dismembered with his parts placed into several boxes. Fami, Haruka, Seigi, and Nobana begin reassembling Chainsaw Man's body under Yoru's orders. The Nail Fiend refuses to help out as they tease Yoru for not understanding love, much to her irritation.
Yoru and the Nail Fiend battle Quanxi.
Eventually, Haruka discovers that Chainsaw Man's true identity is none other than Denji via his disembodied head, which greatly shocks Asa. Before the group can react any further, they are confronted by Quanxi, who was ordered to kill the group by Takagi.[5]
The Nail Fiend then battles Quanxi alongside Yoru and Katana Man but is overpowered in the process. Despite being stabbed multiple times, the Nail Fiend withstands Quanxi's attack. When seeing Takagi getting killed by his Pseudo-Chainsaw wife, the Nail Fiend reveals that Katana Man had earlier freed the door containing her as they get back up.[6]
The group eventually escapes the facility and recover at Fami's apartment. From there, the Nail Fiend keeps watch on Denji with Asa, Haruka, and Nobana. While observing Denji sleeping, the Nail Fiend comments on how he looks cute that way. Asa asks them if Katana Man is done using the bathroom, to which they tell her to complain Fami instead of them. When Denji awakens, they demand that he go back to sleep and comments on Katana Man's ruthlessness for kicking Denji's groin.[7]
While the rest head out to search for Nayuta's whereabouts at Denji's request, the Nail Fiend and Seigi remain behind to look after Fami's apartment for them.[8]
Abilities[]
Physical Abilities[]
- Enhanced Physique: Similar to their partner, they can move at an extraordinarily fast speed, being able to disarm an entire squad of gunmen whilst dodging their every bullet. They are also able to swing their hammer with enough force and speed to pin nails into concrete walls from a distance whilst giving their targets no time to avoid the attack.
Devil Powers[]
- Hammer: The Nail Fiend also wields a hammer in battle, which they use to make their striking attacks.
Chapter Appearances[]
Academy Saga[]
| 132. Protection | Absent |
| 133. Chainsaw Man Protest | Absent |
| 134. Ordinary Happiness | Absent |
| 135. Sentimental Drive | Absent |
| 136. Normal Life | Absent |
| 137. Chu Chu Lovely Muni Muni Mura Mura | Absent |
| 138. Sword Man | Absent |
| 139. A Chair's Feelings | Absent |
| 140. Scales | Absent |
| 141. Normal Life Plus | Absent |
| 142. Denji Fan Club | Absent |
| 143. Rawr | Absent |
| 144. Guns, Nails, Katana | Debut |
| 145. Kumbaya | Absent |
| 146. Chainsaw Man War | Appears |
| 147. Cremation | Absent |
| 148. Room 606 Sword | Absent |
| 149. Devil's Choice | Absent |
| 150. Dream’s Next Stage | Absent |
| 151. The Return of Chainsaw Man | Absent |
| 152. Massage | Absent |
| 153. Chainsaw Man Hunters | Absent |
| 154. All Pets | Absent |
| 155. The Old Me | Absent |
| 156. Whup Whup Whup Whup Bzzz Split Split | Absent |
| 157. College Fund | Absent |
| 158. Gyohnee Guillotine | Absent |
| 159. Attack on Samurai | Appears |
| 160. That for Which the Heart Beats | Appears |
| 161. Chainsaw Man Puzzle | Appears |
| 162. Fearsome | Appears |
| 163. Dream Balls | Appears |
| 164. Charred Remains | Absent |
| 165. Everyday Scenery | Absent |
| 166. Rain, Brothel, Removal | Absent |
| 167. Super Smooch | Absent |
| 168. Kiss, Love, Sperm | Absent |
| 169. Hands and Adaptation | Mentioned |
| 170. How to Eat Sushi | Absent |
| 171. Special Division 5 | Absent |
| 172. Bzzz! Boom! Chomp! | Absent |
| 173. Hard of Hearing | Absent |
| 174. Ayyy, Aging | Absent |
| 175. Both Hands | Absent |
| 176. Two Children | Absent |
| 177. Trigger Finger | Absent |
| 178. Gun Goddess | Absent |
| 179. Vamvagah | Absent |
| 180. Aging's World | Absent |
| 181. Trees on the Mind | Absent |
| 182. Cute | Absent |
| 183. Barf, Head, Perv | Absent |
| 184. Run, Denji | Absent |
| 185. Stomach in Another World | Absent |
| 186. Yank, Blorsh, Bdroom | Absent |
Trivia[]
- Katana Man refers to the Nail Fiend as the "Girly-Boy Devil", Whilst this still doesn't directly confirm their gender; It may infer that they (or the body they possess) could possibly be male.[9]
- In the original Japanese version, Katana Man calls them "Kama no Akuma" (カマの悪魔), which due to the "Girly-Boy" translation, is likely based on the term "Okama" (オカマ); a derogatory way to refer to feminine gay men or transfem aligning people in Japanese.
- This may also be Katana Man merely assuming the Nail Fiend’s gender based on their appearance.
- Nail is called Kugi, the Japanese word for nail, in the original version.
References[]
- ↑ Chainsaw Man Manga: Chapter 144
- ↑ Chainsaw Man Manga: Chapter 146, Pages 7-8
- ↑ Chainsaw Man Manga: Chapter 159, Pages 13-16
- ↑ Chainsaw Man Manga: Chapter 160
- ↑ Chainsaw Man Manga: Chapter 161
- ↑ Chainsaw Man Manga: Chapter 162, Pages 1-13
- ↑ Chainsaw Man Manga: Chapter 163, Pages 7-13
- ↑ Chainsaw Man Manga: Chapter 169, Page 8
- ↑ Chainsaw Man Manga: Chapter 160, Page 4
[]
| Public Safety Devil Hunters | Aki Hayakawa † • Angel † • Beam † • Denji ‡ • Division 2 Vice Captain † • Division 4 Female Member † • Division 4 Male Member † • Ear Devil † • Fumiko Mifune • Furuno • Fushi † • Galgali † • Himeno †• Hirokazu Arai † • Kato † • Kishibe • Kobeni Higashiyama ‡ • Kusakabe † • Madoka ‡ • Makima † • Masaki Ando † • Michiko Tendo † • Minami Nakano ‡ • Nail Fiend ‡ • Nakamura † • Nomo † • Pillbug Fiend † • Power † • Princi † • Quanxi • Sato † • Subaru † • Takagi † • Tamaoki † • Tanabe † • Yutaro Kurose † |
|---|---|
| Civilian Devil Hunters | Akane Sawatari † • Aldo • Denji ‡ • Hirofumi Yoshida • Joey † • Katana Man • Kenzo • Santa Claus ‡ • Tolka † • Asa Mitaka ‡ • Yoru ‡ |
| Devil Hunter Club | Asa Mitaka ‡ • Fami ‡ • Furio • Haruka Iseumi • Hirofumi Yoshida • Nobana Higashiyama • Seigi Akoku • Yoru ‡ • Yuko † |