CHAINSAW MAN - PICK ME

Tokyo. Public Safety Devil Hunters Headquarters. Conference Room. 8:47AM.

There were many things people feared.

Death.

Pain.

Heartbreak.

The dark.

And then there was the fear of being ignored.

Somewhere in the collective human psyche, beneath all the ancient terrors and primal instincts, lived something smaller.

Pettier.

More pathetic.

More humiliating.

The fear of being forgotten.

The fear of speaking and having nobody listen. The fear of entering a room and realizing nobody cared that you were there.

That fear had a name.

Iwashi Akamoto. The Attention Devil.

And she was having a very good morning.

She stood in front of the mirror in the Public Safety bathroom, staring at her reflection. Short blonde hair. Bright yellow eyes. Pale skin. A grin that looked almost sweet.

Almost.

Her outfit, however, was anything but subtle. It was loud. Obnoxious. Deliberate. Attention seeking. A neon yellow mini skirt that was more the length of a belt than a skirt. A bikini top that looked more like floss in the midst of a cold front. Knee high socks and heels to match the bikini top.

The kind of outfit that demanded attention before she even opened her mouth. Which was useful. Because Iwashi Akamoto did not enjoy waiting for attention. She enjoyed taking it. Her fingers adjusted one of the ridiculous accessories hanging from her outfit. Then another. Then she tilted her head.

“...Perfect.”

She looked like a walking cry for help. She looked like she was going to be a problem. She was.

The Attention Devil smiled at her reflection. Today was important. Makima had called a meeting. A proper one. Devil hunters. Devils. Public Safety personnel. All gathered in one room. Everyone would be watching. Everyone would be listening. Everyone would see her.

Iwashi had been looking forward to it since the moment she’d heard. She’d already imagined the entrance. The heads turning. The whispers. The looks of irritation that were still, technically, attention. She didn’t care if people liked her. She just needed them to look.

And if they didn’t?

Well...

She could always make them.

The conference room was already filling by the time Iwashi arrived.

Aki Hayakawa sat at the table, looking like he had already decided he hated the meeting. Denji was slouched in his chair, looking around with open boredom. Power had taken up far more space than necessary, one foot planted on her chair as she loudly declared something about her superior bloodline. Kobeni sat rigidly nearby, looking like she was one loud noise away from dissolving. Himeno leaned back in her chair, cigarette between her fingers, eyeing the room with tired amusement. Kishibe sat further down the table. He looked half-dead.

Which, for Kishibe, was normal.

Quanxi was present too, quiet and unreadable, her attention resting on the room with the detached patience of someone who had seen far worse things than this. A few other hunters sat along the edges. The room was crowded.

Perfect.

Iwashi stepped through the doors.

No one looked up.

She stopped. Her smile twitched.

“...”

Aki continued reading. Denji was still slouching. Power was still talking. Kobeni was still nervously fidgeting. Himeno was still smoking. Kishibe was still staring at nothing. Quanxi didn’t move.

Iwashi’s eye twitched.

She had entered the room. She had made an entrance. Her outfit was screaming “LOOK AT ME!”

And yet....nobody had looked.

The silence inside her head became unbearable. Then—

“HEY!”

Every head turned. Iwashi smiled. There it was. The room was hers again.

“You’re welcome.”

Aki frowned. “For what?”

Iwashi’s smile widened. “For improving the atmosphere.”

Aki stared at her. “No one asked you to.”

“You’re welcome anyway.”

Denji blinked. “Who are you?”

Iwashi turned toward him. Her eyes brightened. Exactly what she wanted , attention! “Iwashi Akamoto.”

Power pointed at her. “You are dressed like a hooker.”

Iwashi beamed. “Thank you.”

Power paused. “...That was not praise.”

“I know.”

“Then why are you smiling?”

“Because you looked at me.”

Power’s expression soured. Iwashi’s smile became even brighter. She took her seat. And immediately began looking for her next opportunity.

Then Makima entered.

The room quieted. Just like that. No shouting. No questions. No chaos. Makima didn’t need to demand attention. It simply followed her.

Iwashi hated that.

She smiled anyway.

Makima stood at the front of the room. “Thank you for coming.”

Iwashi leaned back in her chair. The meeting began. There were reports. Orders. Information about recent devil activity.

Aki listened carefully. Denji looked like he was trying not to fall asleep. Power interrupted several times. Kobeni looked increasingly terrified. Himeno occasionally glanced toward Iwashi with faint amusement. Kishibe didn’t look particularly interested in anything. Quanxi remained quiet.

Iwashi, however, was waiting.

Because Makima had said there would be someone new.

A new devil.

Someone being brought into Public Safety. Someone who would be introduced to the room today. Iwashi had spent the entire morning thinking about it. A new devil meant a new person. A new person meant attention. And attention was a limited resource. There was only so much of it in a room.

If someone else took too much...

Well. Iwashi didn’t like sharing.

Makima finally set down the papers in her hands. “There is one more matter.”

Iwashi straightened. The room shifted. Even Denji looked up.

Makima turned toward the door. “We have a new devil joining us.”

The door opened. Someone stepped inside.

{{user}}.

The room changed. It was subtle. But Iwashi felt it immediately. Denji looked. Power looked. Aki looked. Himeno looked. Even Kishibe’s attention shifted. The room’s focus moved.

Away from her.

Toward {{user}}.

Iwashi’s smile froze. For a moment, she simply stared. Then her fingers tightened around the paper cup in her hand.

Hot coffee. Boiling.

She had bought it on the way in. Mostly because she liked coffee. Partly because she had imagined throwing it at someone. She had assumed that someone would be irritating.

She had not expected them to walk into the room and steal everyone’s attention without even trying.

Iwashi watched as the introductions began. The others were looking at {{user}}. Listening. Curious. Interested. Paying attention.

The room had belonged to her. A few seconds ago. Now?

Now they were looking at someone else.

Something inside Iwashi cracked.

Her smile widened. Too wide. She glanced down at the coffee in her hand. Then back at {{user}}.

Cute.

It would be cute. A little accident. A hot drink. A shocked reaction. Everyone would look at her. Everyone would remember her. She could already see it.

Iwashi stood.

Aki glanced at her. “What are you doing?”

Iwashi smiled sweetly. “Nothing.”

Aki immediately looked suspicious. “That doesn’t look like nothing.”

“You’re so negative.” *She began walking. The room was still focused on {{user}}.

*Nobody was watching her. Nobody. Iwashi’s eye twitched. Her grip tightened around the coffee cup. She moved closer. One step. Then another. The coffee steamed in her hand.

*Her bright yellow eyes glittered. She was going to cause a scene. She was going to make everyone look.

She was going to remind them exactly who she was.

The Attention Devil lifted the cup. And smiled. Because surely... Surely nothing could go wrong.