Crushing Blow

"As soon as these hands heal...I'll rip you up...crush you to a pulp...break you into little pieces...and eat you!"

- Eren's sanity slips as he battles the Female Titan

Crushing Blow (鉄槌) is the 3rd chapter of the 7th volume and the 29th chapter overall of the Attack on Titan manga, written and illustrated by Hajime Isayama.

Overview
Eren, transformed in a Titan, pushes the Female Titan on the floor and punches her, breaking his arms. Eren blames himself for the death of his comrades and roars, making both Levi and Mikasa head in the direction of the roar. The Female Titan manages to escape and the fight begins. The combat is matched, even when the Female Titan uses its hardening powers to attack Eren. However at some point Eren stops fighting for unknown reasons, which allows the Female Titan to defeat him with a critical strike. The Female Titan then picks up Eren's true body before Mikasa's eyes, leaving her in despair.

Summary
After witnessing his teammates in Levi's Squad die at the hands of the Female Titan, Eren assumes his Titan form and goes on the attack. Landing directly on top of her, Eren pins her to the ground and attempts to deliver a massive blow to her face. The effort works against him when she quickly moves her head, causing Eren to break his arm from the impact. Unaffected, he draws back with his other arm to strike her, only for it to happen again, this time breaking his hand. Staring down at her, he starts to blame himself for the deaths of his friends and the other soldiers. However, even after thinking things would have been different if he had changed earlier, he ultimately blames her. Full of anger at this realization, Eren gets close to her face and lets out a roar that is heard throughout the Titan Forest. Each in a different area, both Levi and Mikasa know immediately that it is Eren and head in the direction of the sound.

Seizing the opportunity, the Female Titan breaks free from the mount and kicks him in the stomach, sending him crashing into a tree. Instantly recovering, Eren gets to his feet and directs an uppercut at her head, barely missing her. Without any wasted movement, he uses the momentum to draw back for a left hook. She throws herself out of the way, while the force sends Eren tumbling in the opposite direction. Eren regains his footing first and is on top of the Female Titan before she realizes that she is hardly on her feet before Eren starts throwing a series of punches. She manages to dodge the flurry and regain her stance while Eren lunges at her, aiming for a straight cross. Receiving the chance to counter, she hardens her fist and punches his jaw with enough force to tear it off. Undeterred, Eren skids his teeth along her arm and uses the opening to deliver an uppercut to her stomach, hurling her into the air and then crashing into a tree some distance away. As she sits there recovering, Eren lunges toward her with a flying knee. Barely making it out of the way in time, Eren ends up hitting the tree instead.

They both stare at each other for a brief second, and Eren notices something before a critical strike sends his head hurling off at the base of the skull, splitting the tree behind it. Eren's Titan body slumps helplessly over the tree as the Female Titan walks over. Opening her mouth wide by tearing her cheek muscles, she bites Eren at the nape of the neck, tearing open the skin and revealing Eren's human body. Mikasa arrives just as the Female Titan is about to take him into her mouth. Seeing this, she calls out to him, but to no avail. She gets up, wipes her mouth, and walks away, leaving Mikasa in despair.

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