Chapter 45

Cold-Blooded Battle (冷血の戦い, Reiketsu no Tatakai) is the 45th chapter of the Parasyte manga series, written and illustrated by Hitoshi Iwaaki.

Overview
''During Reiko's confrontation against Kusano and Hikawa, she splits her being into two seperate entities. As her body runs through the city, causing mass hysteria, a smaller portion kills Maesawa from the inside. After shifting her internal attack to Hikawa, Kusano begins attacking her body as well. Distracted from the portion of Reiko's body inside Hikawa, Kusano is struck and killed by Reiko's remaing body. It's revealed when Reiko returns home that her child was taken by the detective.''

Summary
As Tamura escapes, the other parasites split up behind her to narrow her route of escape. When she pauses to remove her heeled shoes Maesawa declares that his body is stronger and can overpower her one-on-one. She dismisses him and transforms a tentacle slowly, allowing him to cut off half of it which then burrows into his human body. With the distraction, she flees and Kusano follows her while Hikawa goes to join Maesawa in his fight.

While laughing madly with what's left of her head shaped into a huge fanged mouth, Tamura flees into a crowded square and is witnessed by many humans who immediately panic and call the authorities. Unable to follow her with all the people around, he assumes she will eventually lose control due to being split in half and waits out of sight.

Hikawa is unable to assist Maesawa due to Tamura's tentacle still hiding within him. He moves towards her, his lower body having been hijacked by Tamura, and leaps on his ally before his body explodes as the tentacle exits and enters her body instead. Sensing one of their deaths, Kusano rushes back towards the scene while Tamura's human body hides near the humans. He realizes that the fragment of Tamura is attempting to take over his last ally's body and begins to attack it while Hikawa pleads for him to stop.

The police have arrived where Tamura panicked the crowd, and they spot what appears to be the monster they witnessed facing away from them. However, it turns and reveals itself to be an unfamiliar lady, causing the police to disperse the crowd and telling them they were mistaken. Two men who are attracted to her begin to chat her up.

Meanwhile, Hikawa struggles to defend her body from Kusano.

The lady places rocks in her purse while the men attempt to flirt with her, and after asking them if she really is pretty she pulls her head in half and runs away cackling.

Dismissing the pleas for mercy as coming from Tamura, Kusano continues to attack his ally as she slowly begins walking towards him, her body having been taken over. He kills her by cutting her into pieces, and as her last action she rages at him. The Tamura half who had escaped then dismembers and decapitates him by surprise, and swings her rock-filled purse to deflect his final attack. With him no longer able to attack, she explains that Hikawa's hostility from being killed by him masked Tamura's own approach and intent to kill. She bids him a farewell as he dies.

As she returns to her apartment, she realizes that it has been unlocked and finds her child has been kidnapped and a note left behind by "Detective Holmes".