After Garou defeated Platinum Sperm, God showed up in the form of Bang and tried to tempt an extremely weakened Tatsumaki with a power-up. Luckily, she refused, and in almost the exact same moment, Bang himself arrived.
Taking things up a level, the Sage Centipede then erupted from the earth below and focused its attention on the heroes. After showing up, Sage Centipede loudly claimed that it had been sent to destroy the abominable fist that opposes God, and declared itself the incarnation of Father Earth.
Sage Centipede then directed its eyes towards the sea, where Evil Natural Water was now known as Evil Ocean Water, due to it fusing with the entire ocean. Sage Centipede referred to Evil Ocean Water as the incarnation of Mother Ocean, stating that along with the latter, it would bring total destruction to the entire planet.
Surprisingly, in a pure flash, Garou jumped forward towards Sage Centipede and pummelled it in the head with a multitude of different strikes. Garou's combo attacks proved to be extremely effective against Sage Centipede, which took damage and was stunned by the hero hunter's assault.
Garou noticed a helicopter in the distance, and saw that Tareo was inside it. He was surprised that the boy had finally managed to escape the Monster Association headquarters, and taunted Sage Centipede, trying to attract its attention. However, Sage Centipede also realized that the helicopter behind it concerned Garou, and it told him not to move, otherwise Evil Ocean Water would shoot down the helicopter with its great oceanic cannon.
As Garou stood there, shocked and annoyed after hearing this, Sage Centipede attacked him with its Centipede Grand March, surrounding and striking the hero hunter repeatedly, with Evil Ocean Water aiding the centipede by shooting a devastating water cannon at him.
During the short moment that Garou was mixed up in the water blast, Saitama popped in, one-shotted Evil Ocean Water, destroying it and enraging Sage Centipede, causing it to chase down the nearby chopper. Garou, noticing this and already having recovered from the damage, chased after the monster.
Suddenly, Metal Bat jumped onto the Sage Centipede and struck it in the face with a multitude of swings from his bat. However, Sage easily shrugged off his assault and simply tossed him away.
Garou was boasting towards the monster while trying to save Tareo, and ended up running straight into the falling Metal Bat, leaving the two of them surprised at seeing each other again. Metal Bat believed him to be getting in his way once more, just like the last time they fought, when he was trying to attack Elder Centipede and Garou kept beating him back.
Metal Bat attacked the hero hunter because of this, but Garou swiftly evaded the hero's swings and kept moving forwards towards the centipede, ignoring him. Garou then jumped under the centipede's back, with Metal Bat slowly catching up to him. As the two of them chased each other on their way to the monster's head, a reporter's helicopter popped up right above the centipede.
Annoyed with the news team's interference, Sage Centipede struck the helicopter with one of its antennae. However, Metal Bat appeared in front of the helicopter and blocked it with a strike. Garou got onto the helicopter and scared off the people inside it, causing it to fly away from the scene.
Immediately after saving all of the humans, Garou charged towards the Sage Centipede and landed a barrage of attacks. Yet, despite taking his blows head on, the centipede was only momentarily knocked back, and quickly recovered from it.
Together, both Garou and Metal Bat stood side by side and assumed their fighting stances. Metal Bat questioned what was wrong with Garou, given that he had not only attacked Sage Centipede but also helped the reporters' helicopter escape, commenting that now he was even more sensible than when he was a human.
Hearing this, the absolutely confused Garou responded by saying that he just wanted to show the world how terrifying he truly was. He informed the hero of the monster's target being the rescue helicopter behind them, stating that the two of them had to buy some time for it to get away. Having thought of a plan, Garou suggested that Metal Bat act as a decoy, much to the hero's anger. And after a small argument, they finally agreed to actually team up against the Sage Centipede.
Meanwhile, in the Hero Association hospital, Suiryu and Suiko watched the situation in Z City through a television. Suiko commented that the reporters would not get away from the monster, referring to Garou, who could leap into a helicopter. Suiryu, on the other hand, pointed out that the helicopter did not crash, and somehow believed that Garou did not want to hurt those people.
Back on the centipede, Garou and Metal Bat unleashed their abilities with Roaring Aura Sky-Ripping Fist and Savage Tornado. However, their attacks could not bring down the monster, due to its extreme durability as well as its powerful regeneration abilities. While recognizing Garou's strength, Sage Centipede thought of Metal Bat as a non-threat, and considered taking him hostage. Garou then criticized Metal Bat for not being able to deal any damage to the centipede-like monster.
Upon hearing the argument, Sage Centipede figured out that it would not work. Instead, it continued to pursue the helicopter in an attempt to take the passengers all hostage. As the monster got closer and closer, One Shotter, unable to aim properly due to losing a special mechanical eye, shot at the centipede, but missed. Sage Centipede then eventually caught the helicopter with its antennae, shattering the rotor blades and taking the people inside hostage.