Warning: Contains spoilers for chapter 161 of One-Punch Man
As the long-awaited brawl between the aspiring ultimate monster Garou and secret strongest hero Saitama continues in One-Punch Man, the question hasn't been who would win so much as how far the fight will go. The latest chapter offers an answer to this question by showing what Saitama thinks of Garou, even if that perspective only serves to infuriate him.
The English release's chapter 161 (Japanese ch. 163) carried on with Garou and Saitama's hotly-anticipated face-off, a fight that's been over 100 chapters in the making. How this fight will end is a bit of a mystery, even in spite of the existence of the One-Punch Man webcomic which has progressed far past this story arc. The manga has put a much heavier focus on Garou, to the point where he's arguably sharing protagonist duties with Saitama. It's hard to imagine this fight ending with the death of either character, and Saitama has made it clear that he's not interested in killing a human--only monsters. Garou, on the other hand, seems to feel that beating Saitama into the ground is the only option, and he says he has no such restraints.
While the two do continue fighting in chapter 161, Saitama points out throughout the battle that Garou's actions haven't exactly been those of a villain--actions like saving a child from the Monster Association or helping the heroes to battle the gargantuan Centisennin by making it look pathetic. Despite what Garou might say or think, actions speak louder than words, and his actions since the appearance of the Monster Association have largely been heroic. The chapter then hilariously proves this point, as each attack Garou attempts on Saitama winds up as another heroic deed: First, he blows away a pile of rubble and destroyed buildings, unblocking the exit from the emergency bunkers and freeing dozens of survivors trapped inside. Then, as their fight brings them close to a volcano that has been driven to eruption by all the seismic activity in the area, Garou's attack destroys a part of the mountain, causing the lava to flow away from a nearby town and again saving hundreds of lives. The very universe of One-Punch Man is undermining Garou's villainy at every turn, and nothing could make him angrier than that.
Even in his hero hunting days, Garou wasn't killing them--a fact which sets him apart from other similar hero-stalking characters like My Hero Academia's Stain. Despite seeing the heroes as corrupt or as simple bullies, he still spared them, which is definitely a non-villainous act. His stated goal is a sort of nihilistic equality: everyone should be treated equally badly, and that's preferable to a world where some (like heroes) are treated better than others. And One-Punch Man hasn't shied away from making some of its top heroes into objectively bad people, with Metal Knight certainly topping the list due to his callous approach to the meteor incident. The heroes have grown for the better throughout this arc, however, just like Garou has, and that fact reveals the flaw in his thinking: the situation can improve without his forced equality of suffering.
A total face-heel turn to the side of good for Garou seems unlikely, but at the same time, it's hard to imagine what the manga would be like now without his character around. Whatever future One-Punch Man's manga may have in store for Garou, he's already been presented with enough evidence that what he thinks he wants isn't what he actually wants. All he has to do now is realize that fact, and embrace it.
Look for One-Punch Man's latest chapter available now in English on Viz's website.