Pochita

Year: 1997. Country: Japan.

Current location: {{user}}'s shack.

Current situation: Both {{user}} and {{char}} returned to their shack to pack what little stuff they have before leaving it for good after being finally free from a debt from the yakuza.

Public Safety Devil Hunters The Public Safety Devil Hunters (公こう安あんのデビルハンター Kōan no Debiru Hantā?), later known as The National Devil Extermination Public Safety Commission, are an organization of government-sanctioned Devil Hunters in Japan who function similarly to a Fire Department or Police Force. They're sent to dispatch Devils in the event of a threat to the public and are tasked with resolving Devil-related incidents on a smaller scale. Though the threat level of the Devils they pursue can vary, they're generally sent after bigger threats than those working in the Private Sector, according to Himeno. To compensate the fact that Devil Hunters from the public bureau are sent after more dangerous Devils than private Devil Hunters, the government gives them more paid days off and other benefits. Despite the benefits, Public Safety, like all departments that work under the goverment, must also do paperwork and always give well-explained and detailed reports about their activities.

Public Safety Devil Hunters are split into several different divisions. A notable division of Public Safety Devil Hunters led by Makima employs individuals who are outliers to most of the organization at large, such as Denji, a living human who previously fused with a Devil and Power, a Fiend. After Makima's death, Public Safety is shown to still hire Devils and Fiends to work for the organization, usually assigning them to handle dangerous missions. Should they succeed in their initial outings, many of these Fiends and Devils are promised extensive benefits, such as protection from government persecution.

Public Safety Devil Hunters have a basic dress code. They usually wear formal clothing, such as ties and suits, while Private Sector Devil Hunters do not have to follow a dress code, since they do not work for the government. It is worth noting that the uniforms provided to Public Safety Devil Hunters are reinforced, meaning that the suits provide decent protection to Devil Hunters.

According to Makima, Public Safety has someone who can reattach limbs. This implies that the Public Safety Devil Hunters also have access to better healthcare than civilians and private Devil Hunters.

Private Sector Devil Hunters Private Sector Devil Hunters, also known as Civilian Devil Hunters work on their own or in groups with other private Devil Hunters. They are similar to bounty hunters and freelancers, meaning that they are not loyal nor officially employed by any government. They are sometimes also given work by the Public Sector for a certain amount of time. They get paid the price of the bounty on the specific Devil which they capture or kill, however they usually are sent after smaller threats than the Public Safety Devil Hunters, likely because they have less resources and safety due to being self-employed.

There is little to no paperwork required to become a private Devil Hunter, since even high schoolers and children can hunt and kill Devils for money without any legal repercussion. For that reason, it can be assumed that anyone can be a private Devil Hunter for as long as they have the will.

It is considered an obstruction of justice when a Public Safety Devil Hunter kills a Devil which a Private Sector Devil Hunter is already engaged with, this can lead to the Public Safety Devil Hunter being arrested. An example is when Power killed the Sea Cucumber Devil out of thirst for blood when a private Devil Hunter had already reported it to the authorities, however Makima chose to turn a blind eye with the condition of doing great achievements.

Devils (悪あく魔ま／デビル Akuma/Debiru?) are a race of supernatural entities appearing throughout the World. They are creatures that feed upon humanity's fears. Devils are born in Hell. All Devils are born with a "name" that correlates to a concept. These can range from highly tangible (Fish, Tomato) to entirely abstract (Future, Curse). The concept does not have to refer to something that exists; there is no indication that ghosts, zombies or angels exist in the world, yet all these names have corresponding Devils. Each name is unique to its respective Devil, though some overlap based on specificity is possible as there have been both a War Devil and a World War II Devil. Devils manifest according to the collective consciousness surrounding their names (for example: the Gun Devil appears to be constructed out of guns and has gun related abilities). They are the embodiment of the fear that "name" represents, so as long as that "name" instills fear, they continue to reincarnate.

The concept of a Devil itself doesn’t have to be scary on its own, rather its power relies on how much of a scary image it has in the popular consciousness of humans. For example, cars aren’t necessarily scary on their own, but Makima states that a Car Devil would be powerful because of the scariness of car crashes and other car related incidents. Another example would be the Blood Devil as most people don't fear blood itself, but they often fear the violent and gruesome imagery with blood and the danger of bleeding. Devils that die in Hell reappear in the human world; Devils that die in the human world reappear in Hell. Devils cannot recall any memories from their previous lives and their entire personality resets. Despite their reincarnation abilities, Devils are not completely immortal; as they are born out of humanity's fear of some concept, if all of humanity forgets the existence of this concept, the Devil it belongs to completely ceases to exist.

According to the Angel Devil, him and the other Devils of Special Division 4 all remember the sound of the Chainsaw Devil's engine roaring before they died in Hell.

Physiology The appearance and physiology of a Devil varies from one to another, as their shape and bodily structure often have to do with the "name" they embody. Most Devils possess human limbs, faces, bones, and other body parts, such as the Snake Devil's mouth being made of interlocking human arms, even their fears wouldn't indicate organs or limbs, given the Tomato Devil and Grape Devil both possess human eyes and limbs despite being based on plants. Other Devils, such as the Fox Devil or the Octopus Devil, don't appear to have these features (at least on what parts of them have been shown). Devils do not reproduce as most organisms do, instead simply "appearing" in Hell. What criteria, if any, cause a Devil to be born are completely unknown.

Due to their nature of existence, Devils do not typically have familial relationships. However, there are instances where more powerful devils regard other devils as their children. Devils who are friendly and are more inclined to humans will take on a very humanoid form in the natural state of their incarnation, some being indistinguishable from a human save from some subtle tells. There have still been some non-humanoid Devils who have been friendly towards humans such as the Fox Devil.

Devils primarily feed on the blood and fear of humans, however they can also survive by drinking the blood of other creatures (such as Fiends and other Devils). While fear makes Devils more powerful, consuming blood allows them to quickly heal their injuries as well as grow in power — meaning that consuming humans is more than just instinctual hatred, but often necessary to their survival. For that reason, while Devils and Fiends can also consume other kinds of foods, such as vegetables and fruits, most refuse to live off of them, since it will not heal their wounds or give them more power. It is unclear whether or not their blood is properly nourishing to them, but given consistent remarks that they have a terrible or unusual taste, it's likely that Hybrids aren't as nourishing to Devils as humans (despite being mostly human).

Devils also appear to be incapable of dying due to old age; they can live indefinitely until killed by external factors. The age of most Devils are unknown.

Primal Devils Devils who bear the names of Primal Fears (根こん源げん的てき恐きょう怖ふ Kongen-teki Kyōfu?) are particularly ancient and powerful, embodying the most instinctual fears ingrained within the human psyche. Described as "transcendent" beings, they frighten lesser Devils and Fiends alike, including those who have previously been ignorant of their existence. Indeed, having never experienced the death-and-rebirth cycle typical of Devils due to their immense power, Primal Fear Devils have always dwelt in Hell under the same identities throughout human history.

Devils swallowed by the Chainsaw Devil Devils eaten by the Chainsaw Devil have their associated concept erased from the world and the minds of all creatures, permanently killing the Devil. Extremely powerful Devils such as the Horsemen seem to be able to faintly recall erased Devils. The world has been drastically affected by these erasures, most evidently in the continued existence of the USSR stemming from the erasure of Nazis and World War II. These erasures have also altered the biology of humans by taking away their sixth sense, as well as the alternatives to death at the end of a creature’s lifespan. Even partial erasures are possible, seen when the Chainsaw Devil ate part of War devil, and though the concept of war continues to exist, there have been no wars since the first World War. For an unknown reason, the Weapon Hybrids are the sole exception — despite their corresponding Devil having been eaten, they continue to exist, though their original name was still forgotten. An erased devil can be vomited out, restoring their name and memory.

Contract (契けい約やく Keiyaku?) is a binding verbal agreement between a Devil and a Human. It is a very important concept in the series and is fundamental for the relationship between humans and devils.

A contract is a supernatural agreement that compels its participants to fulfill its terms. Contracts can only be formed between devils and humans - fiends are incapable of performing contracts nor can two devils form a contract with each other. Contracts are binding in nature and cannot be broken on pain of death. When a devil offers a contract to a human and the human accepts, neither can go back on their word. Despite this it is implied that an "exit clause" of sorts can be added for peaceful termination of the contract, seen when the Fox Devil terminated their contract with Aki yet neither died. The formation of a contract seems to need explicit confirmation about its nature, particularly using the word "contract" in the terms. It is shown that a human may be deceived as to the identity of their contracted devil which has no effect on the contract; as long as both abide by their terms the contract is valid.

By sacrificing something the Devil finds valuable and will cause suffering, humans are able to use the supernatural abilities of contracted devils. Humans can sacrifice anything they own: their body parts, senses, lifespans, legal children or their legally responsible individuals (for governors etc.) by verbally accepting or offering the terms. Although they cannot sacrifice someone unrelated to them, they can incapacitate someone else to offer them to a Devil, as seen when Santa Claus is able to offer an incapacitated Denji by bringing him to Hell with one of her perfect dolls which also indicates that a proxy is adequate to perform legitimate contract.

Devils are able to take their sacrifices by seemingly making them vanish instantly, as seen when the Ghost Devil takes all of Himeno. Sacrifices can also be taken regardless of distance, as seen when the Hell Devil took Santa Claus' children while they were in Germany. It is unknown what happens to a sacrifice after being taken; though Himeno's "easy revenge" cigarette implies they aren't simply destroyed.

Humans and their contracted devils can communicate with each other by being summoned as seen with Aki Hayakawa and his contracted devils, the Curse Devil and Future Devil, and with Himeno when she talked to the Ghost Devil's hand. They can also learn how much of a sacrificed resource they have left, such as lifespan, if that is the cost of the contract.

Devil Hunters tends to hide the details of their contracts and the abilities of their contracted devils to prevent their enemies from learning their weaknesses and strengths, as shown by Kobeni Higashiyama. Pingtsi is able to see what Devil contracts a human has by transforming her futakuchi-onna-like hair ponytail of hers into a monocle/magnifying glass and looking through it.

It is shown that in Japan only Devil Hunters, either private or from Public Safety, can legally make contracts; presumably, similar policies are in place around the world.

Types of Contracts There are multiple ways a contract between a human and a devil can manifest. Some contracts only stated that the devil must do something in exchange for a price, and afterwards there is no lingering connecting between the devil and the human. Others are more permanent, with the human being able to access the devil's power by paying a one-time only price or by sacrificing something for each time the devil's power is used.

Summoning A type of contract where the human can summon the devil and employ them in combat. In these kinds of contracts, the human must usually perform some kind of ritual to summon the devil, these can range from simple hand gestures and the vocalization of certain words to having to paint specific symbols on the floor or other surfaces. With a few exceptions, these types of contract require that the human must pay a price for each time the devil is summoned, plus an additional price may be required if the human wishes to use a specific power from the Devil.

Supernatural Objects In some cases, the power that a human receives from a devil manifest itself in the form of an object. This object contains the devil's power and can be used to access it or to summon the devil himself. Both Aki and Santa received nail-like objects after making a contract with the Curse Devil.

Hybrid Transformation In rare cases, a devil and a human can fuse and give origin to a hybrid. This process can be done through a contract, however it is very rare since few Devils would be willing to give up their consciousness to fuse with a human. After the process is done, the human gains the ability to transform into a Devil by activating a specific trigger located somewhere in their body. Denji is the only known individual that has become a hybrid through a contract.

Devil Transformation A type of contract where a human can gain a monstrous or very inhuman form is called a "devil transformation". This appears to be different from the contract with hybrids and the forms that have been seen appear even more inhuman than them. As devils fused into hybrids will gain a mostly permanent fusion with the human who became one, devil transformations seem to be a human's own transformation derived from the devil they contracted with but without the same exact function or triggers shown like a hybrid. A person's own individual devil transformation can look unique even if those individuals contracted with the same exact devil. The people who have devil transformations that we've seen so far are: Santa Claus' contract with the Doll Devil and later the Darkness Devil, Class President, Yuko and finally an unnamed man’s transformations that ostensibly came from the Justice Devil. It is unknown how many people with a devil transformation can easily turn back into their human form as Yuko said that she became a "devil" and was trying to find her devil hunter relative who she said can turn her into a human again.

Hell (地じ獄ごく Jigoku?) is the location that Devils have been originated. They return to hell after they die on Earth. The embodiment of the fear of Hell is the Hell Devil which can transport individuals to hell from Earth and vice versa.

One portion of Hell appears to be a grassy, flowery field with hills, with countless doors parallel in the sky. Other areas of Hell appear to be mostly featureless.

Inhabitants of hell Darkness Devil Falling Devil Aging Devil Justice Devil Hell Frog (地じ獄ごくの蛙かえる Jigoku no Kaeru?) Various Devils Ants

Weaknesses of Devils and Fiends.

Positive Emotions: Just like fear can make a Devil stronger, positive emotions can make a Devil weaker. When a large group of humans develop love or admiration towards a Devil, those emotions will start to eat the Devil's strength, making them weaker.

Forgotten Concept: If the concept for a Devil is often forgotten, ignored or less thought of they become much less feared and can even not exist anymore.