Line 29

Ego Defense (エゴディフェンス) is the second chapter of the sixth volume and the overall twenty-ninth chapter of the Devils' Line manga series.

Summary
Anzai resists Ishimaru's blood after he purposely cut his thumb during their sparring match. Ishimaru assures him that along with sexual desire, he should be physically stronger and faster, with a better reaction time. He demands Anzai to hit him and he does so with ease. The punch leaves behind a nosebleed and Anzai momentarily loses control, but backs off. Ishimaru punches him in the gut while he's hesitating and tells him not to do that. Anzai wants to know how he knows so much about devils. Ishimaru agrees to tell him if he can land one more blow to his face. Anzai agrees reluctantly. He grazes Ishimaru's cheek just as Tsukasa and Sawazaki arrive at the warehouse to meet them.

Ishimaru tells Tsukasa to stay back and for Anzai to lie down for the tranq. He explains that he became interested in devils after befriending one as a kid, so he's read a lot about them. He's surprised by how calm Anzai is around blood. Instead of giving him the tranq, he raises the knife to his arm and lets the blood drip into Anzai's mouth. Anzai blacks out and remembers being stuck in a tree as a child. Kikuhara was helping him get down. As he's blacked out, he growls at Ishimaru and goes for him arm, but Ishimaru pushes his head down and watches carefully as the cut he got from the devil in the restaurant heals. He had read about this phenomenon in an essay. A tear runs down Anzai's cheek and Ishimaru is taken aback.

Sawazaki pummels him off of Anzai. With the help of Asami, he restrains Anzai and gives him the tranq. Tsukasa goes to hug him. Sawazaki takes Ishimaru aside and scolds him for not taking Anzai's feelings into accound. Ishimaru apologizes.

Asami goes to the police headquarters to look up information on Kenichi Morisawa as Nanako Tenjo requested. He finds the name on the computer, but can't locate the file. Fellow officer, Takimoto of C Squad had taken the file since the sniper's name looked familiar to him and he lets Asami see it. It had been under "I" for inside jobs. Morisawa had been an officer with Division 5, Section 2, AR Squad. He met Sayuri Tenjo at city hall, where she worked. Her husband had passed away and they dated for about a year until he hugged Nanako while transformed and she shot him. The bullet hit his ear and he took the gun from her and shot her in the heart. He then drank her blood and raped her in front of Nanako. That's when Nanako stole the gun and fired it at his head, killing him. According to Sayuri's diary, she knew he was struggling with his bloodlust. It became harder for devils to be promoted after the incident since Morisawa was an excellent officer with no signs of trouble.

Anzai and Tsukasa listen to Asami's report. Tsukasa hypothesizes that Nanako liked Morisawa in the way that children love and admire adults. It would have been a tragic thing to kill someone she cared about and thought she could trust. Anzai hopes the same won't happen to him and Tsukasa.

Anzai sends an email to Dr. Kanou about the memory he saw as he blacked out and if that is normal.

Sawazaki and Asami continue to investigate Nanako's past. Sawazaki is sure that she met someone that helped her justify what she did to Morisawa at one of the many study groups held at her house by her foster father. Kirio Kikuhara's name is highlighted on the list of attendees.

Nanako and Zero Nine are out at night, thinking whether or not to join in the police's investigation into the CCC. Sensing her reluctance, Nine asks if she likes Kikuhara.

Chapter Notes

 * Anzai becomes faster and stronger after transforming and gains the upper hand in his fight with Ishimaru.
 * After the fight, Ishimaru gives Anzai his blood instead of a tranq to see if blood will really heal wounds.
 * Anzai blacks out and has another memory of Kikuhara at the orphanage.
 * Sawazaki stops Ishimaru and gives Anzai the tranq.
 * Asami learns about the Kenichi Morisawa case and how it relates to Nanako Tenjo. Based on the information, Tsukasa thinks Nanako liked Morisawa before the night she killed him.
 * Kikuhara was the one who met Nanako at her foster father's study group.

Characters

 * Yuuki Anzai
 * Megumi Ishimaru
 * Tsukasa Taira
 * Takashi Sawazaki
 * Kirio Kikuhara
 * Yousuke Asami
 * Seiichi Takimoto
 * Kenichi Morisawa (no dialogue)
 * Ryuusei Yanagi
 * Nanako Tenjo
 * Zero Nine